Hydro Tasmania's 2016 financial records show HSF was its third most favoured legal adviser by spending, after Clayton Utz and K & L Gates.

Mr Quinn's corporate card spending also included $400 towards an $823.50 bottle of wine for AGL's general manager of corporate development, Paul Frazer.

HSF's business development expenses also covered Mr Quinn's charity donations for Capella Capital director Chris Oliver and Credit Agricole CIB director Zac White, speaker fees for Australian cyclist Simon Gerrans, and executive coaching from Foresight's Global Coaching, the court documents show.

The partners' spending on client gifts and entertainment emerged as part of the court battle between Herbert Smith Freehills and its departing partners.

The documents give a rare insight into the extent to which top professional services firms such as HSF are prepared to spend on developing client relationships.

The revelations also raise questions about the extent to which it is acceptable for lawyers' clients to accept offers of entertainment and gifts without compromising the integrity of their procurement process.

In their evidence to the court, all eight partners denied collectively spending $364,000 on business development. Mr Quinn admitted incurring the business development expenses but he said the figures did not solely reveal his business development expenditure because a number of expenses involved other partners at the firm.


Other partners, including Joanne Draper and Jared Muller, disputed the accuracy of the figures, noting a number of expenses related to travel for client work or taxi fares for working late at the HSF office.

Baby gifts

The court documents show HSF also paid for a number of client gifts and entertainment on behalf of the other departing partners.

For example, Mr Muller's expenditures included gifts to the in-house counsel at energy infrastructure company Jemena and oil and gas giant INPEX for the births of their babies.

Meanwhile, partner Joel Rennie's corporate card spending included €3100 ($4400) for four tickets to the French Open tennis.

HSF's spending also included footing the client lunch, dinner and drink bills at upmarket venues such as Rockpool Bar & Grill and China Doll, and stays at five-star hotels for domestic and overseas business development trips.

In contrast, Tim Power and Ms Draper were modest spenders, with each partner spending $3672 and $2865.

Mr Quinn said in his evidence to the court that engaging in the business development activities was a significant part of his role as a HSF partner.


"Most of my business development activity consisted of establishing and maintaining a network of contacts with financiers and developers, as well as intermediaries such as investment banks," he said.

He said the key ways he developed that network involved regular meetings with clients over coffees and lunches and attending other networking and social events with clients.

The case returns to court on June 5.

misa.han@fairfaxmedia.com.au