Commonwealth Law Conference

Peter has almost 30 years experience as a lawyer since graduating from Adelaide University with a Bachelor of Laws and of Economics together with a Master of Laws attained later.  Peter started his legal career as an Associate in the Supreme Court of South Australia.  He was a partner in a commercial law firm before being called to the independent bar where he practised mainly as a commercial barrister for 12 years.  In 2016 he became a part time Senior Member at the AAT and then a full time Deputy President in 2018.  In March 2019 he was appointed as head of the General Division of the AAT.  He continues in that role. 

He moved from Adelaide to Melbourne at the beginning of 2021 and is a Collingwood supporter.

Mark Dreyfus KC MP was appointed Attorney-General of the Commonwealth of Australia on 1 June 2022.

The Hon Mark Dreyfus KC MP was first elected to the House of Representatives as the Member for Isaacs in November 2007.

In 2010, Mark was appointed as Cabinet Secretary and Parliamentary Secretary for Climate Change and Energy Efficiency. He worked closely with the Prime Minister and with the Minister for Climate Change and Energy Efficiency to tackle climate change, improve our energy efficiency and increase our use of renewable energy.

In February 2013, Mark was appointed as Attorney-General and Minister for Emergency Management. In March 2013, Mark was given additional responsibilities as the Minister for the Public Service and Integrity and Special Minister of State.

Before entering Parliament, Mark was a Melbourne barrister and appointed Queen's Counsel in 1999.  He served as an advisor to the Victorian Attorney-General and Minister for Planning between 1985 and 1987. 

An expert in commercial and planning law, Mark was the Legal Editor of the Victorian Planning Reports and a member of the Victorian Planning and Environmental Law Association. He was one of the top defamation lawyers in Victoria.

The Chief Justice of the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia is the Honourable William Alstergren. Chief Justice Alstergren is also Chief Judge of the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia.

Chief Judge Alstergren was appointed Chief Justice of the Family Court of Australia on 10 December 2018. His Honour was appointed Chief Judge of the Federal Circuit Court of Australia in October 2017. His Honour held a dual appointment as Deputy Chief Justice of the Family Court from December 2017 and he has presided over the Appeals Division of the Family Court since March 2018.

Chief Justice Alstergren has a Bachelor of Arts and a Bachelor of Laws from the University of Melbourne. He also has a Master of Laws. He practised as a barrister in Melbourne from 1991, and took silk in 2012. He was the Chairman of the Victorian Bar in 2013 and President of the Australian Bar Association in 2017.

Justice Melissa Perry was appointed to the Federal Court of Australia in 2013 and was appointed as a Deputy President of the Administrative Appeals Tribunal in 2019.  Her Honour graduated in Law from Adelaide University with 1st class honours, and was awarded a prize-winning PhD in public international law from Cambridge University.  She practiced at the Bar in Australia from 1992 to 2013, being appointed Queen’s Counsel in 2004, and was admitted to the Bar of England and Wales in 2012.   Her Honour’s areas of expertise in practice included constitutional law, administrative law, migration law, environmental and climate change law, native title, and international law. 

Justice Perry serves as a commissioned officer with the Royal Australian Air Force Legal Specialist Reserves and was appointed to the Defence Force Discipline Appeal Tribunal in October 2018.  Her Honour’s appointment as Deputy Judge Advocate General for the Royal Australian Air Force and promotion to the rank of Air Commodore have recently been announced and will shortly take effect.  She is also a member of the Judicial Council on Cultural Diversity (JCCD) established by the Council of Chief Justices and chaired the expert committee which prepared the first and second editions of the Recommended National Standards for Working with Interpreters in Courts and Tribunals.  Justice Perry was also a member of the Editorial Working Group which reviewed Modern Slavery: Guidance for Australian Courts, published by the JCCD in 2021. 

Among other roles, her Honour is a foundation Fellow and former director of the Australian Academy of Law, and a member of the advisory boards for the Centre for International and Public Law (ANU), the Gilbert + Tobin Centre of Public Law (UNSW), and the Research Unit on Military Law and Ethics (University of Adelaide).  In addition, her Honour recently joined the Advisory Board for the UNSW Allens Hub for Technology, Law and Innovation.  She served for many years on the Administrative Review Council, an independent statutory body which monitored and advised on federal administrative law.  Her Honour’s publications extend across a broad range of subject matters and include her role as co-editor of the second edition of Australian Native Title Law. 

After almost 10 years at Sydney’s Redfern Legal Centre working on human rights and consumer law, Ben was appointed the Manager, General Law, Legal Aid Commission of NSW where he oversaw a practice of over 100 lawyers and others working on civil law matters.  In 2000 he joined Maurice Blackburn’s Class Action department before becoming the Managing Principal, NSW, Maurice Blackburn in 2006.  He left Maurice Blackburn in January 2022 to join the Bar in Darwin.

Class actions that Ben has conducted and supervised have recovered over $1 billion for investors, consumers and victims of human rights abuses. 

Ingmar Taylor SC is a senior barrister at the NSW Bar specialising in employment and industrial law, including all matters arising under the Fair Work Act 2009. He was appointed silk in 2012.  His expertise includes cases concerning conditions of employment, enterprise bargaining, dismissal, rights of registered organisations and contracts of employment. Ingmar appears for employers, unions, State and Commonwealth government entities and the Fair Work Ombudsman.  Ingmar also has an extensive work, health and safety (WHS) practice, regularly appearing both as prosecutor and for defendants.  Ingmar has been the Editor of the Industrial Reports since 1998, was Chair of the Law Council of Australia’s Industrial Law Committee from 2012 to 2022, and for the last three years has been ranked by Doyles Guide as Preeminent in the category of Leading Employment Law Senior Counsel, Australia.

On 4 February 2021, the then Attorney-General Christian Porter announced the appointment of the Hon Christopher Jessup KC as the Inspector-General of Intelligence and Security. Dr Jessup's five year appointment commenced from 8 February 2021. Dr Jessup was previously the Acting Inspector-General from 18 January 2021.

Prior to this appointment Dr Jessup was a barrister and then a Judge of the Federal Court. Dr Jessup commenced practice as a barrister at the Victorian Bar in 1975, specialising in employment and industrial law. In 1987, Dr Jessup was appointed Queens Counsel.

In 2006, Dr Jessup was appointed to the Federal Court of Australia. He retired in 2017 and returned to practice as a barrister. Dr Jessup was an Adjunct Professor of Law at Monash University from 2017 to 2020.

Dr Jessup holds a PhD from London University, a Bachelor of Economics (Hons) and LLB (Hons) from Monash University. Dr Jessup also holds a Bachelor of Applied Science (Wine Science) from Charles Sturt University.

Kate has 30 years experience in dispute resolution and advocacy in a wide range of employment disputes, all aspects of discrimination law (employment, services, education, transport and media), human rights (international and Australian), public law and health law. She regularly appears in the Federal Court, Federal Circuit Court, Fair Work Commission, Industrial Relations Commission and State/Territory tribunals for trials and appeals in matters arising under the Fair Work Act, Industrial Relations Act and all Federal/State/Territory discrimination laws. Kate also has extensive experience in Royal Commissions and inquiries.

She appears for individuals, Commonwealth, State and Territory governments and agencies, for multi-national and Australian ASX 200 corporations, partnerships and small business in a range of matters including internal compliance audits, internal grievance and disciplinary procedures, mediation, advisory work and litigation.

Alice is highly regarded and passionate about employment and industrial relations and this is reflected in the work she undertakes and the outcomes she achieves for her clients.

As Managing Partner, it is her intuition, insight and perspective that helped create the vision for the new firm. Alice is innovative and inspirational, and driven by a desire to create and deliver a client service that is unrivalled in this market.

Alice works with her clients in both the public and private sectors to devise and implement strategic plans in relation to employees, human resources and industrial relations. She is renowned for thinking outside the square to achieve clients’ organisational objectives, and for her practical and commercial approach to the resolution of issues – which often involves complex and difficult litigation.

With deep expertise, Alice skillfully handles all manner of issues relating to the employment relationship, including restructuring and mergers, harassment, discrimination, termination of employment, and the management of difficult employee issues. With respect to collective labour issues, Alice provides strategic advice in relation to employment structures and industrial relations planning and management, including union relations and collective bargaining.

Alice regularly represents clients in tribunals and superior courts in employment, industrial relations and restraint of trade/restrictive covenant cases, and is a very experienced litigator. She is also an experienced trainer, regularly creating and delivering programs and sessions for clients that are designed to give them the knowledge and tools to comply with their obligations.

Alice’s clients include multi-national employers across a number of industries, including government, construction, infrastructure, transport, banking and finance, resources, and utilities. Having worked in-house, Alice has a unique set of skills, coupled with an invaluable insight into the expectations and practical application of the legal advice she provides to her clients.

Robert is one of Australia's leading commercial litigation lawyers specialising in large scale, complex disputes and class actions.

Robert has been involved in many of Australia’s most high-profile commercial claims and class actions including directors' and officers' liability, professional indemnity claims, trustee cases, regulatory proceedings, most of the major the multi-billion-dollar infrastructure “traffic forecasting” class actions and more recently, many of the significant shareholders' class actions.

Robert has been involved in class actions in Australia since the regime was introduced and is recognised as one of Australia’s leading lawyers in that field. He defended AMP in the first ever major shareholder class action, defended Permanent Trustee in ASIC’s first ever s50 class action and has more recently been involved in the MFS, Dick Smith, Opal Tower and Quintis class actions.  His expertise was also recognised by the judiciary with his appointment by the Full Federal Court as one of the first “contradictors” to assist the court in a ground-breaking appeal involving contingency fees.

Robert is also a recognised insurance expert not only advising on policy wordings and recoveries but having the confidence of insurers who have appointed him as defence counsel in numerous matters including class action defence work.

Additionally, Robert has dealt extensively with regulators including ASIC, APRA, the ACCC and the ASX.  He also has Royal Commission and other major enquiries experience.

Robert is endorsed by his peers as a leading expert in the areas of dispute resolution, class actions, insurance and reinsurance including in Chambers and Partners, Legal 500 Asia Pacific, Euromoney’s Expert Guides, Legal Who’s Who, Doyle’s Guide and Best Lawyers. He is regarded as “strategic and approachable”, a lawyer who “really looks after his clients” with an “outstanding level of personal service”. Clients say Robert Johnston stands out for his mastery of the class action discipline describing him as "an outstanding communicator who keeps me completely up to date and can put a legal argument into straightforward language" and with his presence being one of the key reasons for using the practice for one major client.

Bronwyn is a Partner in the Disputes team with extensive experience in commercial litigation and international arbitration.  She also regularly advises on conflicts of laws, international treaty rights and obligations (including the CISG) and on the enforcement of foreign judgments and foreign arbitral awards in the Australian courts.

Bronwyn’s practice covers a range of industry sectors, including international trade, insurance, building and construction, energy and resources, pharmaceuticals, technology and renewables.  She has a particular interest in the resolution of joint venture and shareholder disputes and a specialist practice in cross border and multi-jurisdictional matters.

Georgina Costello KC is a barrister working in the areas of public law, property law, contract cases, class actions and tort litigation. She is Treasurer of the LCA’s Federal Litigation and Dispute Resolution Section and Chair of the Migration Law Bar Association of the Victorian Bar.

Katherine was admitted to practice in South Australia in 2006 and called to the New South Wales Bar in 2019.  Katherine’s core practice area is administrative law.  She acts for both private parties and government agencies and has considerable experience defending agencies as respondents to judicial review applications. 

Annually since 2016, Katherine has been listed by Best Lawyers in the categories of Government Practice and Immigration Law.  She was recognised by Best Lawyers as the 2023 ‘Lawyer of the Year’ for her work in Immigration Law in Sydney.

Katherine is enthusiastic about giving practical and timely advice that addresses the needs of her clients and about maximising efficiency through the innovative use of information technology.  She is also a passionate advocate for wellness and diversity at the Bar.  When she’s not in court, you will probably find her on the tennis court.

Valerie is the current Chair of the LCA’s Migration Committee. Since joining the LCA Migration Committee, Valerie have been an active participant and been instrumental in organising the Migration Law Conferences in 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2020, 2021 and 2022.

Valerie also has a boutique law firm in Melbourne with a particular speciality in work and talent visas for Silicon Valley clients who wish to migrate to Australia. Valerie is registered as a foreign legal consultant with the State Bar of California.

Professor of Public Law and former co-Director of the Sydney Centre for International at the University of Sydney Law School, Mary has worked in the area of immigration and refugee law since 1985. An Accredited Specialist in Immigration Law, she maintains a pro bono practice alongside her academic role. She has recognised in the peer publication Best Lawyers in Australia in immigration law since 2008. 

In a career spanning over 30 years she has authored 15 books and over 80 articles and book chapters.  Her work spans every aspect of migration law from citizenship, labour migration, family and asylum law as well as merits and judicial review.  Mary has worked over many years to advocate for respect of international law and human rights. She has worked as consultant to the Australian Human Rights Committee and for various senators.  Earlier in her career she took leadership roles with Law Societies in Victoria and New South Wales as well as with the Law Council of Australia.  Her academic research has a strong focus on vulnerable migrants and comparative law and policy.

Andrew Cope is an LIV Accredited Immigration Law Specialist and heads the practice of Cope Migration. Andrew is actively involved in Business Skills, Corporate as well as Personal Migration, and has been recognised by Who’s Who Legal as one of Australia’s leading corporate immigration lawyers.

Andrew has been involved in a range of educational and professional activities, including CPD and postgraduate (including Masters) migration programs at the ANU and Victoria University, and has appeared before State and National Parliamentary Committees on issues of immigration policy and operations. Andrew authored the Lexis Nexis Quick Reference Card in Immigration Law, a handy reference document for practitioners.

Andrew studied at Melbourne, Macquarie and Deakin Universities as well as the University of NSW. Prior to becoming a lawyer Andrew’s previous work including as a Reference Librarian at the NSW Parliamentary Library, as Special Assistant to a Leader of the House in the NSW Legislative Assembly, and as a Licensed Court Recorder in the Supreme Court of Victoria, with stints such as a trackman on the Flemington racecourse and as a boatman on the Yarra River. Andrew’s interests include Australian History, biography, swimming and walking, and previously completed a number of 100km OXFAM walks

Daniel is a dedicated taxation barrister known for his strong and extensive technical and advisory knowledge, in relation to structuring as well as settling taxation disputes with the ATO.

Since being called to the Bar in 2007, Daniel has appeared in leading and complex taxation cases on a broad range of complex issues including transfer pricing, international corporate structuring, consolidations and Part IVA. Daniel’s practice includes advising clients on all Commonwealth and State taxes.

Prior to 2007 Daniel gained extensive taxation experience in the public and private sectors.  As a result of the experience, Daniel has an excellent perspective on the operation of tax law in a broad commercial context.

Lachlan practices in commercial and public law, and specialises in taxation and the foreign investment regime.

He frequently acts for the Commonwealth as well as private clients. Lachlan has appeared in a wide range of disputes in the High Court, Full Federal Court, Federal Court, Court of Appeal and Supreme Court, as well as the Banking Royal Commission and the Police Informants Royal Commission.

He advises on commercial and corporations law matters, including foreign investment (FIRB) matters, equity and trusts and ASIC regulatory disputes (frequently acting for ASIC).

He is a board director of the Law Council of Australia and has been a member of the Victorian Bar Council. He is Deputy Chairman of the National Trust of Australia, as well as a not-for-profit director of the National Trust of Victoria Foundation and Ys Housing; as well as a director of Bromleigh Capital and FIA Australia.

Craig was awarded the Con Varnavas prize for the highest aggregate mark in the bar exams and came to the bar in May 2006 and appointed senior counsel in 2019.

Craig has a broad public law practice, specialising in constitutional and administrative law matters and appellate work and a member of the Human Rights Committee of the NSW Bar Association and of the Ethics Committee of the Australian Bar Association.

Sam Hay has a broad practice at the Bar encompassing advice and appearance work at trial and appellate level. He appears in the superior courts. He has extensive experience in banking and finance disputes, corporations law, insurance disputes of all types, fraud and fiduciary matters, financial advice disputes, class actions, insolvency cases, trust disputes, professional negligence claims of all types and contract and trade practices disputes. He also has extensive experience in tort cases (including institutional abuse and malicious prosecution matters) and administrative law (judicial review) proceedings. Sam regularly appears in Royal Commissions and Commissions of Inquiry.

Peter Woulfe has been recognised as one of Canberra’s leading commercial and dispute resolution barristers: Doyle’s Guide, 2020 & 2021.  Peter has a civil practice in a range of practice areas, with a particular focus on government and administrative law.  Peter has also been regarded as one of Australia’s foremost Commonwealth compensation barristers, having worked on various matters of importance to the application of the Safety, Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 1988 (Cth).

Peter is the current Section Chair of the Federal Litigation & Dispute Resolution Section. 

Justice Murphy graduated from Monash University and was admitted as a practitioner in 1980. He was Senior Partner of law firm Slater and Gordon from 1990 to 1995, and Chair of law firm Maurice Blackburn from 2005 until appointment to the Court in June 2011. From 1998 to 2011 he headed Maurice Blackburn’s national class actions practice primarily specializing in class action litigation relating to directors’ duties, corporate conduct, and cartel conduct, in which period he conducted, supervised or advised on more than 30 class actions. Since appointment to the Court he has case managed and/or heard a large number of class actions both as a trial judge and at an appellate level. He is a Principal Fellow of the Melbourne University Law School, lecturing in class action law. 

Justice Nichols brings extensive experience in commercial law, regulatory matters including competition and consumer law, and professional liability to the Court.

Her Honour was admitted to practice in 1998, joined the Victorian Bar in 2007 and was appointed Queen’s Counsel in 2017. 

Before joining the Court, Justice Nichols led ground-breaking cases and conducted significant class actions in which foundational principles were developed at a time when class-action jurisprudence was in its early stages in Australia. 

Dr James Popple is the CEO of the Law Council of Australia.

James was previously Official Secretary to the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety and the Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide.  He was also the inaugural Freedom of Information Commissioner, a Senior Member of the Administrative Appeals Tribunal, and a member of the ACT Remuneration Tribunal.  Before that, James worked for 12 years in the Australian Attorney-General's Department.  Before joining AGD, he was a judge's associate, then Deputy Registrar of the High Court of Australia.

James has degrees in law and arts, and is admitted as a barrister and a solicitor.  He is also a Fellow of the Australian Academy of Law, and an Honorary Professor of the Australian National University (in the College of Law and the College of Engineering, Computing and Cybernetics) where he conducted his doctoral research in artificial intelligence and the law.

Luke Murphy has been a legal practitioner since 1989 and is an accredited specialist in Personal Injuries through the Queensland Law Society.

Luke has served on the boards of various organisations, including the Royal Life Saving Society of Queensland, Holy Spirit Care Services Pty Ltd, The Salvation Army Red Shield Appeal Committee, and other community organisations.  

Luke was President of the Queensland Law Society (QLS) in 2020, having been elected to the QLS Council in 2017, and has been an integral member of Queensland Law Society’s policy committees for over two decades. 

Luke is the 2023 President of the Law Council of Australia, having been director since 2020 and a member of the executive in 2021. 

Luke has a long history of involvement in government consultations and law reform initiatives on behalf of QLS. In 2016 he was appointed by the Office of Industrial Relations as one of six members of the Section 193A Review Panel under the Workers Compensation and Rehabilitation Act 2003.”

Kate regularly appears, both led and unled, in federal and state jurisdictions at trial and appellate level. She practises nationally in the Federal Court of Australia and the Administrative Appeals Tribunal and travels regularly for appearances. Kate appeared for the plaintiffs in the two most recent High Court cases on the operation and application of the power in s 51(xix) of the Constitution: the ground-breaking case of Love v Commonwealth of Australia [2020] HCA 3; (2020) 270 CLR 152 (where she was led by Stephen Keim SC) and, Chetcuti v Commonwealth of Australia [2021] HCA 25; 95 ALJR 1 (where she was led by Georgina Schoff QC and Georgina Costello QC).

Kate is frequently briefed in complex judicial review proceedings (see, for example, Norouzi v The Director of the Professional Services Review Agency [2020] FCA 1524; Byron Aged Care Limited v Aged Care Quality and Safety Commissioner [2022] FFCA 1060 (unled against Silk)).

John Emmerig is one of Australia's leading litigation lawyers. He has 33 years' experience in high-stakes litigation spanning class action defense, "bet-the-company" commercial/contract disputes, and government and regulator litigation/investigations. John has a national reputation for his outstanding track record in each of these fields.

John is co-chair of the Class Actions Committee of the Law Council of Australia, an adjunct professor of law at UNDA, an editorial board member of the Journal of Equity, lead author of the "Class Actions" section of the Federal Court Practice Manual, the editor (Federal) of the Journal of Civil Litigation and Practice, a Fellow of the Australian Academy of Law, a member of both the Federal Court of Australia's LCA Liaison Committee and Class Actions Committee, a participant in various ASIC consultation fora, a member of AMCHAM's Defence and National Security Committee, a guest lecturer, and the author of over 100 legal articles.