Learn from the best. Elevate your advocacy with this specialised training for criminal lawyers from some of Australia’s most experienced criminal law KCs, senior barristers and criminal law specialists. Take the opportunity to learn from the best from around the country. Explore effective techniques for persuasive addresses, strategy and tactics for cross-examination, appeals and post-trial advocacy plus drafting persuasive sentencing submissions. Stay across the most pressing emerging issues in evidence, including vulnerable witness testimony and forensic evidence. Plus understand the issues in complicity & criminal attribution.

Presenters

Andrew Tiedt, Director, J Sutton Associates
Andrew is a Director and Principal of J Sutton Associates. He is a Law Society of NSW Accredited Specialist in Criminal Law. Andrew has acted for thousands of clients who have been accused of criminal offences, including appearing for persons charged with murder, sexual offending, fraud, serious driving offences, drug supply and possession, violence, and internet-based offences. He is an experienced trial advocate and frequently appears without counsel in indictable matters, including jury trials. Andrew has been recommended by the Doyle’s Guide for both criminal and traffic law since 2019. Andrew is also the curator of the popular reference website www.trialdirections.com.au


Karen Espiner, Partner, Hugo Law Group
Karen has been a criminal defence lawyer in private practice for over 10 years. She is an Accredited Specialist in Criminal Law and is currently completing a Master of Laws (Criminal Practice) at the University of Wollongong. In 2015 she co-founded Younes + Espiner Lawyers, a firm that in 2021 merged with Canberra-based firm McKenna Taylor. Now known as Hugo Law Group, the firm operates across NSW and the ACT and currently employs 14 lawyers.


Shirley Casey, Barrister, Francis Burt Chambers
Shirley is a Barrister at Francis Burt Chambers. Prior to joining Francis Burt Chambers, she was a Barrister at Albert Wolff Chambers. Shirley has worked mainly in criminal defence and represents clients in all courts throughout WA. Shirley was regarded in Doyles Guide as a leading criminal barrister 2024.


Dr. Ian Freckelton AO KC, Professor of Law and Psychiatry, University of Melbourne, Honorary Professor of Forensic Medicine, Monash University
Dr. Ian Freckelton AO KC is a distinguished barrister, Professor of Law and Professorial Fellow in Psychiatry at the University of Melbourne, and Honorary Professor of Forensic Medicine at Monash University. He is the Editor of the Journal of Law and Medicine and a Fellow of the Australian Academy of Law, the Academy of Social Sciences in Australia, and the Australian Academy of Health and Medical Sciences. A Life Member of the Australian and New Zealand Association of Psychiatry, Psychology and Law, he was appointed an Officer of the Order of Australia (AO) and received the prestigious Prix Philippe Pinel from the International Academy of Law and Mental Health in 2024. Recognized in Best Lawyers in Australia for Public Law, Personal Injury Litigation, and Commercial Law (2021–2024) and listed in Doyle’s Guide as a Leading Administrative and Public Law Barrister (2021–2024), Dr. Freckelton continues to shape legal and forensic scholarship and practice.


Professor Felicity Gerry KC, Crockett Chambers
Dr Felicity Gerry KC is an international barrister at Crockett Chambers, Melbourne, Libertas Chambers London, and Professor of Legal Practice at Deakin University. Labelled “The International Dynamo”, Felicity has been recognised for her work across jurisdictions on career defining cases including in the UK Supreme Court on #jointenterprise law, the High Court of Australia on rights to second appeal, a due diligence memorandum on investment listing on SGX for Justice for Myanmar, which led to the $82m divestment of the Golden City scheme and for her role in saving a trafficked woman from death row in Indonesia. She is leading the legal petition for Christine Keeler to receive a posthumous pardon after the fallout of one of Britain’s biggest ever political scandal, The Profumo Affair, in the 1960s. Her successful petition for mercy for Zak Grieve, a young Indigenous man in Australia, has been described as “rock star lawyering”. Admitted in the International Criminal Court (ICC) & Kosovo Specialist Chambers (KSC) in The Hague, in England & Wales and Australia (Victoria & High Court Roll) and has had ad hoc admission in Hong Kong and Gibraltar. Currently defending at the ICC on the Al Hassan team and the Kosovo Specialist Chambers leading the Bahtijari team and has led for the defence in major terrorism and homicide trials. Felicity holds a PhD on human trafficking and is regularly called upon to handle complex and sensitive matters at trial and on appeal. She has appeared on all major news channels and is an expert on issues relating to women and law, technology and law and reform of justice systems. She is currently Senior Anti-Human Trafficking Expert Consultant and Trainer for Lawyers Without Borders.


Tom Percy KC, Albert Wolff Chambers
Tom Percy KC was admitted to practice in 1978 after graduating from UWA. He was elected to the WA Bar Association in 1984 and took silk in 1997. He practices primarily in the area of Criminal trials and appeals. He is a former National Director and State President of the Australian Lawyers Alliance. He won the WA Civil Justice Award in 2006, The WA Law Society Community Service Award in 2007 and the WA Lawyer of the Year award in 2013. He is currently Head of Chambers at Albert Wolff Chambers in Perth.


Clayton Wallis, Consultant Crown Prosecutor, Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions
Clayton Wallis is a Consultant Crown Prosecutor with the Queensland Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP). He commenced his career with the ODPP in 2007 before taking on the role of Crown Prosecutor in 2009. Since that time he has prosecuted a wide variety of criminal and quasi-criminal matters across the State from the Magistrates Court to the High Court of Australia. Before his appointment to the position of Consultant Crown Prosecutor in 2022, Clayton was responsible for the management of a number of regional and Brisbane based prosecution Chambers, supervising a diverse range of criminal litigators and administration staff. In his 15 years of prosecuting he has prosecuted almost the entire gamut of criminal offences in the Criminal Code including homicide, violence, sexual and property offences both as prosecutor, counsel for the appellant and counsel for the respondent. In recent times Clayton was responsible for the management and supervision of the ODPP Appeals unit and has appeared in the Court of Appeal on approximately 100 occasions as lead counsel and as both as a junior and lead counsel in the High Court of Australia for both special leave applications and full hearings.


Melinda Walker, Melinda Walker Criminal Lawyer
Melinda was admitted to practice in 2000, commenced sole practice in 2003 and has conducted her practice coming on 21 years. She attained Accredited Criminal Law Specialisation in 2014 and was Co-Chair of the Executive Committee for the Criminal Law Section of the Law Institute of Victoria (“LIV”) 2017-2021. In 2017 Melinda was appointed the Chair of the Bail Reform Committee on behalf of the Law Institute of Victoria to make submissions to the Honourable Justice Coghlan who presided over the Bail review. She was also LIV representative at the Bail Reform Project, Criminal Justice Strategy & Coordination – Bail Reform Implementation Working Group convened by the Department of Justice & Regulation 2017-2018 to identify priorities for the development of the “Coghlan Recommendations” and consider proposals for action and appeared before the Coroners Court inquest into the death of Veronica Nelson as a member of expert panel on bail law. Melinda has extensive experience and knowledge of all jurisdictions and have appeared as counsel and instructor in all courts. I have represented many Indigenous clients and appeared in Koori Court both in the Magistrates’ Court and County Court jurisdictions. She has now been involved in the services of Law for close to 30 years in various capacities. This includes paid and volunteer work. Melinda is an active participant in law reform in the areas of bail, family violence, sentencing, youth, policy and procedure.


Kirsten Edwards SC, Forbes Chambers
Kirsten is a barrister at Forbes Chambers practising predominantly in criminal law and coronial inquests. Kirsten’s appearances as junior counsel in the High Court include IMM, Hughes, Kadir & Grech, Dansie and, in relation to DNA evidence, Forbes and Aytugrul. Kirsten’s experience in complicity law includes working on submissions for the High Court cases of Miller v The Queen and Mitchell et al v The King and appearing in the Supreme Court (with Phillip Boulten SC) for Harriet Wran who was charged with murder on the basis of extended joint enterprise combined with constructive murder (ultimately pleading to lesser charges). Kirsten is an Adjunct Associate Professor at UNSW and has also lectured at UTS and Sydney Law Schools. Before coming to the Bar, she was an Associate to Justice Michael Kirby, completed a Masters in Law at Yale Law School as a Fulbright Scholar and spent three years as a duty solicitor at the Legal Aid Commission. In 2005 Kirsten spent 6 months working with the Innocence Project in the USA for prisoners on death row and serving sentences of life without parole.