Andrew has a diverse civil and criminal practice. His briefs generally involve some aspect of public or criminal law. He is equally comfortable and experienced working alone or as part of a team of lawyers. He has conducted many complex proceedings unled as well as working successfully with many of Australia’s most prominent silks. He has a strong paperwork practice and is regularly briefed to provide complex advice, draft pleadings and to prepare or settle other documents. Further information about particular areas of expertise is set out below.

Crime

Andrew accepts briefs in all criminal matters, but he is generally briefed in long and complex trials, white collar crime or regulatory prosecutions. During 2021 he defended the matters of CDPP v Kannan (Supreme Court Commonwealth slavery prosecution) and DPP v Alimic (long-running conspiracy to defraud).

Andrew also has particular expertise in matters involving specialist investigative techniques. He has considerable experience with coercive questioning, acting and advising in the investigative stages (appearing at crime commissions and similar bodies), in criminal proceedings involving the use of such evidence and in related proceedings such as judicial review and contempt of court.

In this area, Andrew has appeared in the following interesting, significant or reported decisions:

• DF v R (2014) 46 VR 114 (led by S Donaghue QC);
• Ross v Chief Examiner (2014) 45 VR 220 (led by OPH QC on appeal);
• Glass v Chief Examiner (2015) 50 VR 577 (led by R Niall QC, including defending special leave application);
• R v DA & GFK [2016] VSCA 325 (led by P Hanks QC on appeal);
• McLeod-Dryden v Supreme Court of Victoria [2017] VSCA 60 (led by D Gurvich QC).

Andrew holds an Indictable Crime Certificate and is on Victoria Legal Aid’s Criminal Trial Preferred Barrister List.

Andrew accepts pro bono and legally aided briefs. He has undertaken Aboriginal cultural awareness training and has experience defending refugees on criminal charges in Nauru. 

Inquests, inquiries and investigations

Andrew has wide-ranging experience in inquests, judicial inquiries and other forms of inquisitorial proceedings and investigations. He has appeared in many inquests encompassing deaths in custody, occupational health and safety and medical matters.

His experience includes significant, lengthy and complex inquests and inquiries such as:

• the Inquiry into the conviction of David Harold Eastman for the murder of Colin Stanley Winchester (led by Dr Freckleton QC);
• the Inquest into the deaths of Margaret Penny and Claire Acocks (unled – the Portland hairdresser murders);
• the Inquest into the death of David Warburton Wood (unled - the death of a helicopter pilot in Antarctica).

Andrew has also acted in related judicial proceedings and appeared for witnesses, interested parties and as counsel assisting for standing inquisitorial bodies in Victoria and interstate.

Regulation and professional discipline

Andrew practises extensively in professional discipline, licensing and regulatory matters. In this area, he has experience in all manner of tribunal proceedings (at Commonwealth level and in state tribunals around Australia), boards and committees, inquiries and investigations, and judicial proceedings. He has been briefed in relation to a wide variety of trades, professions and licensing regimes but principally acts in matters involving lawyers, health practitioners and emergency services.

Post-sentence monitoring and supervision

Andrew has been appearing and advising in post-sentence supervision and monitoring proceedings for over a decade. He has developed considerable expertise in the field in that time and is fully conversant with the tools and principles of expert risk assessment that underpin the area.

Other civil practice

Consistent with the rest of his practice, Andrew’s commercial, compensation and other civil cases usually involve some component of administrative, regulatory or public law, or intersection with the criminal law. For example, he was recently involved in long-running Supreme Court litigation defending a peak medical accreditation body in a claim by a practitioner pursuant to contract and trade practices (led by T Boston QC). He has considerable experience acting for and against Government entities in compensation cases, often involving intentional torts.

Background

Andrew previously worked as a solicitor in private practice, for Government and in Fiji as part of an Australian aid program.