Who Is The Gold-Plated Lawyer Peter Cooper?
John Bowie, LawFuel publisher
In the 1980s when I started the first ‘Rich List’ for the NZ Financial Review there were few lawyers who made the List – perhaps only Michael Friedlander – but as the world changes. The NBR bought the Review and the Rich List and its membership continues to evolve with toy-makers and billionaire lawyers – well, one anyway. Peter Cooper, the former Russell McVeagh partner who has become a billionaire property investor in the United States and New Zealand and a noted philanthropist.
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Once deep in commercial and property law, Cooper’s career took a sharp turn in the late ’80s—think less court filings, more coastline acquisitions. And now? He’s got a real estate footprint that stretches from Auckland’s Britomart to Texas megamalls and philanthropic gifts that make Ivy League deans weep with joy.
And his Cooper & Company is also a major investor in energy technology, including an interest in Calnetix Technologies, building and developing high speed electric motor and related devices and technologies, as well as natural gas, hydrogen and other energy developments.
From Law Firm Life to Lion Nathan
Cooper started his professional life in the high-stakes trenches of Russell McVeagh, climbing the ranks in commercial law. But by the mid-1980s, he’d co-founded Mace Development Corporation and was playing a pivotal role in one of New Zealand’s largest corporate mergers—Lion Breweries and L.D. Nathan, helping to form what became Lion Nathan.
Then came the 1987 crash. The market tanked. Cooper pivoted.
He moved to the U.S. in 1989 with his wife Sue and their five children, not to retire, but to reload.
Building Texas, Boutique-Style
Living in Newport Beach, California where he undertook major real estate development his major property play was in Texas. The Southlake Town Square, (above) a sprawling urban village became Cooper’s signature U.S. development. Created with business partner Brian Stebbins under the Cooper & Stebbins banner, Southlake was no suburban shopping mall—it was a US$800 million masterstroke of urban planning.
Needless to say, it worked. Cooper sold off other U.S. centres for US$257 million to fund it, and he didn’t stop there. He added private equity investing via Cooper & LeVasseur, targeting multi-billion-dollar NYSE-listed companies.
This wasn’t lawyering anymore, but major legacy-building.
Back to NZ – with Style (and $$$)
Despite his U.S. success, Cooper didn’t forget home soil.
Through Cooper and Company, he returned to New Zealand to helm the iconic Britomart redevelopment in Auckland—a preservationist-meets-modernist revamp that turned tired infrastructure into one of the most dynamic commercial and cultural precincts in the country.
He also developed The Landing in the Bay of Islands, a luxury retreat with vineyards, restored heritage sites, and (of course) a private beach. This is someone who doesn’t just build properties but curates experiences.
Philanthropy, Prestige & Legacy
But one of his major contributions was not real estate development, but a major philanthropic donation.
Cooper donated US$50 million to Georgetown University in 2015 to support student-athletes—the largest single gift in the university’s athletics history, the image of Peter and Susan Cooper at the time of the donation (above). The Cooper’s five children are all Georgetown graduates.
He said that the University’s athletic programme had played a key role in the development of his children, including his daughter Kylie who co-captained the womens’ swimming team while his three sons played football.
The Cooper Athletic Leadership Program at the University is designed to provide leadership and personal development for its participants and the donation saw the main athletic field renamed The Cooper Field. (pictured).
And in 2014, he became a Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit, followed by winning the Kea World Class New Zealand Supreme Award in 2021.
He also seeded NZ$1 million to launch the Britomart Arts Foundation, supporting public exhibitions and cultural programming.
Peter Cooper’s career is a masterclass in reinvention. From a bluecollar Kaitaia background and a Northland courtroom to billion-dollar developments and legacy-building philanthropy, he turned legal acumen into a passport for commercial and philanthropic achievement.
His journey is a reminder that your law degree isn’t necessariuly a straight-jacket but can also be a springboard.
