Penman's education and legal career were centred on Sydney, the capital of New South Wales and the largest city in Australia. Sydney became the commercial and financial hub of the country, which made it a natural base for corporate and commercial law practice.
Penman studied at the University of Sydney, where he took a Bachelor of Laws. Founded in 1850, the University of Sydney was the first university established in Australia, and a law degree was the usual academic qualification for entry to legal practice in the country.
He was admitted to the bar in Australia in 1971. Australian lawyers are admitted to practise by the courts of the individual states and territories, so admission marked his entry into the legal profession after his university studies.
Penman worked as a partner of Phillips Fox. The firm traced its origins to 1864, when it was founded as P.D. Phillips, and it grew into one of the largest law firms in Australasia.
Phillips Fox later entered an exclusive alliance with DLA Piper Rudnick Gray Cary, one of the largest legal services organisations in the world, and adopted the name DLA Phillips Fox. In 2011 DLA Piper opened for business in Australia by absorbing that firm.
