Catherine Jones Williams is a dedicated Victorian barrister with a strong focus on criminal matters, appellate cases, advice work, regulatory matters and health law.
She is committed to providing exceptional service to her clients.
Background:
Prior to joining the Bar, Catherine provided specialist litigation support to Ruth Shann (now SC) and Neil Clelland KC in the successful defence of two significant regulatory prosecutions – CDPP v O’Mara (an ACCC criminal cartel case) and VWA v Agarwal (a medical fraud case involving 123 charges). These cases spanned over two and a half years and involved intricate legal and evidentiary issues.
Practice areas
Catherine has an established criminal law practice and a growing practice in public, common law and appellant cases.
In general criminal matters, she represents clients as defence counsel in both summary and indictable matters. She also prosecutes indictable crime. Catherine is experienced in conducting committal proceedings, County Court pleas and appeals. She appears regularly in the County Court for both prosecution and defence.
She recently obtained one of the lowest sentences for carjacking in a County Court plea for a vulnerable aboriginal offender.
She has also been briefed as a junior in a range of Supreme Court matters in both crime and common law.
Catherine is building an appellate practice in criminal and public law, with a focus on assisting vulnerable prisoners and people with disability. She is currently briefed as junior counsel in a Victorian Supreme Court conviction appeal, led by Dermot Dann, KC and is giving advice pro-bono in two other appeal matters.
Expertise:
Catherine is adept at managing complex litigation and advice across a range of practice areas and preparing written submissions.
She brings a wealth of experience to her practice, including the experience of working closely with senior members of the bar, including Senior and Kings Counsel.
She has previously worked as a solicitor-advocate for Chester Metcalfe lawyers appearing daily in the Magistrates Court and as a County Court Judge’s Associate. Catherine is one of the few barristers at the Bar who is also a Chartered Accountant, having worked for 10 years in the insolvency and consulting divisions of KPMG.
With strong commercial experience, Catherine brings business and financial acumen to complex regulatory briefs and white-collar crime. She has also consulted to the health sector on regulatory matters.
Catherine has a keen interest in medical law and excels in briefs that involve medical evidence. She is experienced with medical files having worked in medical compliance in the health sector and she does ongoing voluntary work for a children's brain cancer charity.
Advocacy and Commitment:
Catherine is deeply committed to advocating for human rights and regularly takes on pro-bono cases on behalf of vulnerable or disadvantaged clients in all areas of law but with a focus on appellant cases.
In earlier years whilst studying law, Catherine regularly provided pro-bono support to defence solicitors and counsel. This included assisting Ms Burnside (now Magistrate) at a contested committal on a murder charge including the preparation of submissions which resulted in the discharge of the client (and two co-accused).
Recent Matters:
Since joining the Bar in May 2022, Catherine has been involved in several notable cases. These include:
Mentors:
Catherine read with Diana Price and her senior mentors are Ruth Shann SC and Timothy Walker KC.