Jonathan is one of Victoria's leading public law barristers in the environmental law field. He also has a busy practice in the fields of construction law, taxation (state and federal),and general commercial law.
Jonathan was lead counsel in a string of recent influential environmental cases. The outcome of one of those cases (Environment East Gippsland (No 4) v VicForests [2022] VSC 668) cause the Victorian government to end logging of native forests by 2024. Another of Jonathan's cases, in the Court of Appeal, is frequently cited as authority for the principles that govern standing to bring public interest cases (VicForests v Kinglake Friends of the Forest [2021] VSCA 195).
Jonathan is regularly briefed, both in Victoria and interstate, to advise on environmental law matters and litigation.
Jonathan's commercial practice focuses on construction disputes, state taxation, and general commercial matters. He is an accomplished and sought after mediator and negotiator. Jonathan's negotiation skill set draws on 20 years’ business experience at CEO/director level in the field of IT, as well as his prior professional work in counseling psychology.
Jonathan is regularly briefed to appear in all jurisdictions, both at first instance and appellate levels. He has appeared before the High Court on several occasions, including representation of the successful appellant, unled, in the well-known case of Rozenblit v Vainer (2018) 262 CLR 476 which has been cited in over 70 published decisions.
Jonathan graduated Bachelor of Laws and Master of Laws, both with distinction. He was invited to teach Corporations Law, Equity and Trusts at Monash University. He was awarded the Society of Construction Law Award for Construction Law in 2016, and, earlier, the Law Institute of Victoria Prize as dux of the College of Law. Jonathan also has teaching qualifications. His work has been published in the Building and Construction Law Journal: The measure of damages for breach of a construction contract where there is no economic loss, (2018) 34(3) BCL 159.
HIghlights of Jonathan's recent litigated matters. Jonathan appeared unled in all of these cases:
- Frontlink Pty Ltd v Commissioner of State Revenue [2023] VSC 521 - an appeal from a VCAT state tax review case
- VicForests v Environment East Gippsland Inc [2023] VSCA 159 - Court of Appeal case succesfully resisting a challenge to Environment East Gippsland (No 4) v VicForests [2022] VSC 668 - the decision that brought logging to an end in Victoria
- Warburton Environment Inc v VicForests (No 5) [2022] VSC 633 - another landmark decision which enforced protection of a native tree species found only in the Central Highlands of Victoria
- VicForests v Kinglake Friends of the Forest Inc. (2021) 66 VR 143 - a frequently cited Court of Appeal decision setting out the principles of standing in public law cases.
- Binginwarri Friends of the Jack and Albert River Catchment Area Inc v VicForests [2021] VSC 824 - a case elucidating an important aspect of the standing of incorporated associations.
- Feldman v Tayar (2021) 64 VR 429 - a court of appeal decision, concerning the circumstances in which arbitration awards can be set aside.
- Rozenblit v Vainer (2018) 262 CLR 476 - an important High Court decision, overturning 3 successive decisions at trial and intermediate appeallate levels. It established the proposition that cases should not be stayed unless there is no other fair way to protect the interests of the party seeking the stay.
- Decleah Investments Pty Ltd and Prince Removal and Storage Pty Ltd as Trustees for the PRS Unit Trust v Commissioner of Taxation (No 2) [2018] FCA 717 - successful appeal in relation to validity of a valuation for purposes of the GST margin scheme
To discuss Jonathan's availability or for more information, please contact the Clerks at Greens List on +61 3 9225 7222.