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I am a passionate advocate with a close eye for detail and a focus on robust advocacy.

My primary areas of practice are common law and personal injury law, in particular institutional abuse law. However, I also have experience in public law and criminal law.

I also practice in child protection law and commercial matters including contract, debt and professional negligence claims.

I have also completed my Master of Laws. In this degree I studied current issues in civil procedure, government liability and consumer law, as well as discrimination and human rights law.

Before signing the Bar Roll, I was a Senior Lawyer at Knowmore Legal Service and I also worked as a solicitor at Slater & Gordon Lawyers and Ryan Carlisle Thomas/Stringer Clark Lawyers.

I read with Andrew Dimsey and my senior mentor was Jonathan Brett KC.

I use they or he pronouns, although they is preferred.

Kathy practises in personal injury and common law, with extensive experience across all Victorian courts in workers compensation, transport accident and public liability matters. She regularly appears in serious injury applications, common law damages trials and tort cases.

Kathy is a nationally accredited mediator and has completed the Negotiation and Leadership Program at Harvard Law School’s Program on Negotiation.

Prior to coming to the Bar, Kathy was a Partner in a personal injury law firm. She is a member of the Australian Lawyers Alliance and Hellenic Australian Lawyers and is fluent in Greek.

Kathy read with Fiona Ryan S.C. and her senior mentor was Tim Tobin S.C.

The information referred to above has been supplied by the barrister concerned. Neither Lennon’s List Barristers nor The Victorian Bar Inc have independently verified the accuracy or completeness of the information and neither accepts any responsibility in that regard.

Jason Romney has returned to the Victorian Bar in 2015 after working at the forefront of new digital services.

In his previous role as Head of Technology Innovation for Telstra, he developed a wide range of consumer and business digital solutions.

Working at companies such as Cisco on smart cities, workplaces of the future and the “Internet of Things”, he has built on the insights of his Law Press book, Law on the Line, about 21st century communications and the law.

This broad experience with “cyberlaw”, security and e-business issues he applies to his work as an advocate in matters that combine the need for knowledge of civil or criminal law, with a degree of technical understanding.

Michael practices in common law, commercial law as well as in wills and probate matters. He frequently appears in the Supreme and County Courts.

Toby practices solely as a Neutral, and has done so since 2016. That is as Arbitrator, Expert Determiner, Facilitator, Mediator, and Dispute Avoidance Board (DAB) Member,  Prior to turning to the law he qualified and worked as a professional engineer, first in oil and gas and then in civil construction. In law, his practice has been predominately based in technical engineering and construction cases, but he has worked across a wide field of cases that involve science and technology.

Toby has an extensive practice as determiner. He works as arbitrator, expert determiner and as Special Referee appointed by the Supreme Court. His practice is primarily in Australian arbitrations, but he has been appointed and published awards in International arbitrations.

Toby ‘s work has been the subject of positive judicial comment:

• “… Mr Shnookal also has significant experience acting as a tribunal in various arbitrations and as a member of VCAT for 10 years.  … In my view, his extensive experience as a tribunal member and arbitrator is likely to result in the arbitration being conducted in the most efficient way, both in the hearing and in the delivery of the reasons for decision.”

Gemcan Constructions Pty Ltd v Westbourne Grammar School [2020] VSC 429 [72] per Lyons J.

• “… the overwhelming impression of the Report is of an even handed, impartial and diligent consideration of the issues the subject of the reference.”

Tedra Australia Pty Ltd  v Greater Western Water Corportation  [2023] VSC 96 [450] per Delany J.

Toby is also regularly appointed Facilitator by the Supreme Court to facilitate the production of joint expert reports in a very wide area of disciplines that include medical issues.

Toby’s long  career in law has been focussed on major disputes in the building and technology areas and spread over every state in Australia. His now specialist practice as a neutral is built on very broad experience.

The range of technology fields  in which he has worked include geotechnical, structural, roads, mechanical, chemical, electrical, process, tunnelling, wind, bridges, electrical generation including solar, wind and cogeneration, medical injury and negligence, safety, reliability engineering, hydrometallurgical, fatigue, asbestos, lead, welding, waterproofing, building regulation, fire, dredging, water treatment and storage, pipelines, plastic, rubber, post tensioning, plastic design, finite element, software design, hydrometallurgical, oil and gas, offshore structures and processing, nuclear, ships and marine, bulk material, corrosion, and many more.

Toby is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (CIarb), Fellow of the Resolution Institute (RI), Fellow of the Australian Centre for International Commercial Arbitration (ACICA), a Grade 1 Arbitrator, was accredited as an Advanced Mediator with the Victorian Bar and an experienced DAB practitioner. For ten years he was a Sessional Member of VCAT hearing building disputes and conducting compulsory conferences.

He has published a text on construction law (Brooking 4th edition) and written articles that have appeared in law journals. Particular interests as an author include the use of standard form contracting, the role of and law concerning superintendents, the ethics and practice of forensic engineers, arbitration rules and practice and working collaboratively with expert witnesses.

Toby has served on a vast number of professional committees too numerous to list. He is currently  a Director of Resolution Institute and Chair of its Determinative Subcommittee. He has been the chair of both the Arbitration and Adjudication Subcommittees of the Victorian Bar and was a Chapter Chair of IAMA. He was author of both t he current Chair of the Shoreham Foreshore Reserve Committee of Management.

More information in the form of a longer CV, please click here.

Warren is a commercial barrister. He has acted for individuals, companies and incorporated associations in civil litigation. He has appeared in the Federal Court in bankruptcy proceedings, the Supreme, County and Magistrates Courts in commercial disputes. He is experienced in drawing pleadings, appearing in interlocutory skirmishes and running trials in court.

He has acted in appeals to the trial division of the Supreme Court and judicial review matters.

Warren has also acted in criminal matters, intervention order matters, family law and crimes compensation proceedings.