Tasmania’s high flying lawyers: The powerful figures of Tassie’s legal scene and the lawyers making waves
Tasmania is filled with an abundance of talented lawyers who battle it out in the courtroom in the name of justice. See who made the ultimate list of the state’s most prominent and powerful legal professionals >>
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Tasmania is filled with an abundance of talented lawyers who battle it out in the courtroom in the name of justice.
In a competitive and cut throat profession, we have spoken to insiders of Tasmania’s legal landscape and compiled a list of some of Tasmania’s high flying lawyers: from 30 year veterans, to newcomers, here is a list of some of the state’s most prominent and powerful legal professionals.
Sebastian Buscemi
Hobart- based lawyer Sebastian Buscemi is at the forefront of representing Tasmanians survivors of institutional child abuse.
Buscemi is the director of his own firm, Odin Lawyers, where he focuses on examining historic child abuse involving government institutions.
While still relatively early in his career, Buscemi has been a major player in fighting for Tasmanian victims of institutional child abuse and also in fighting to uncover existing practices that allow the crimes to continue.
After graduating from Monash University in 2014, Buscemi worked for Angela Sdrinis Legal in Melbourne where his focus on institutional child abuse cases began.
In 2018 the young lawyer then moved to Hobart after time limitations for child sex abuse were removed in Tasmania and Angela Sdrinis Legal opened a Hobart office to help Tasmanian child sex abuse survivors.
In September 2020 Buscemi left the firm to start his own legal firm, Odin Lawyers.
Since his move to Tasmania in 2018 the 34-year-old has been a major player in representing institutional child abuse survivors, working with over 300 Tasmanian clients who have been victim to institutional child abuse.
Buscemi said that fighting to prevent existing and future institutional child abuse is a key part of his work.
“As important as uncovering these systematic practices is to seeking justice for survivors of abuse, it is vital to prevent it continuing.
“I have taken this on primarily because as a lawyer working with survivors of ‘historic’ abuse I was seeing far too much current abuse,” he said.
Buscemi also represents whistleblowers who wish to provide information about historic and ongoing practices within government institutions.
Fabiano Cangelosi
Cangelosi has been involved in a number of high profile cases and between 2018 and 2020 he was the Tasmanian President and Director of the Australian Lawyers Alliance.
Before being called to the bar in 2018, Fabiano practised at the Launceston firm of Rae & Partners from 2011 to 2014 and at the Hobart firm of Simmons Wolfhagen from 2014 to 2017.
In 2017 Cangelosi represented Meaghan Vass, a key witness in the ongoing controversial murder trial of Bob Chappell involving Sue Neill-Fraser, and in 2019 he represented convicted rapist and killer Jamie John Curtis after he was controversially granted parole.
Cangelosi also represented Rebels Motorcycle Club State president Shaun Lee Kelly on a charge of evading police.
Cangelosi said he hopes to achieve justice in his role in law.
“There are some major problems in terms of process and procedure in Tasmanian courts and I see my role as making sure where possible the legal result that comes out of the end of the case is as near as possible to the just result,” he said.
“There are all sorts of impediments to making those two results line and up and I see fundamentally that it’s the lawyers responsibility to do everything they can to see that the legal result is as close as possible to the just result.”
Cangelosi also ran for the seat of Franklin for the Labor Party in the 2021 Tasmanian state election where he caused controversy during the campaign by denouncing two of his party’s policies.
“It is sometimes impossible to get the just result in the courtroom. Sometimes we have to look for justice outside of the courtroom.
“My professional interest is achieving the just result and that was why I decided it was time to step into politics.”
Dinesh Loganathan
Up and coming Hobart criminal lawyer Dinesh Loganathan is the founder and director of Logan & Partners.
Originally from Singapore, the young lawyer moved to Tasmania to study law where he graduated from the University of Tasmania with a law degree in 2016.
In 2017 Loganathan joined Hobart firm Crotty Legal where he stayed until March 2021 before leaving to open his own firm, Logan & Partners.
One of Loganathan’s most prominent cases is his defence of convicted murderer Darren Ward Gale. Gale was found guilty of decapitating a pensioner, flinging his head from a bridge and burying his headless body in a shallow bush grave in the state’s North-West.
Loganathan is one of Gale’s defence lawyers that are challenging the conviction.
Loganathan currently sits on the Criminal Law committee within the Law Society of Tasmania and said he started his own firm to create a new way of operating.
“It was very simple. I had an objective which is that law firms in Tasmania need to operate differently,” Loganathan said
“There are many aspects of Hobart law firms that I don’t agree with and I wanted to create my own firm to operate it how I think is best.
“One of the key reasons of opening my own firm is that I wanted to start a firm that younger graduate lawyers with a passion in criminal law could come and work at without the fear of meeting billable hours.”
In 2020 Loganathan pushed for a police misconduct tribunal, stating that there needs to be more transparency and independence on how complaints are managed and handled.
“Excessive force by police is a problem worldwide and it needs addressing,” he said.
“Im still pushing for a police misconduct tribunal and I’m not going to stop pushing for it.”
“I’ve had a huge number of clients that have been poorly treated by the Police and so I think there needs to be a change,” he said.
Kate Mooney SC
Kate Mooney is a barrister at Michael Kirby Chambers in Hobart and in 2019 became one of only a handful of females in the state to be appointed Senior Counsel.
Ms Mooney practices in the areas of matrimonial and de facto property, child protection, parenting matters, and coronial matters.
Ms Mooney graduated from the University of Tasmania with a Bachelor of Arts in 1991, a Bachelor of Laws with Honours in 1994, and a Diploma of Legal Practice in 1995.
She was admitted to practice in 1996 and for 14 years worked as a judge’s associate at various Hobart private law firms and at the Legal Aid Commission of Tasmania before signing the Bar Roll in 2010.
Ms Mooney is a member of the Mental Health Tribunal; the Chair of the Law Society of Tasmania’s Family Law Subcommittee; a member of the Australian Bar Association’s Family Law Subcommittee; and holds memberships to the Law Council’s Family Law Section, the Family Law Practitioners’ Association of Tasmania, the Law Society of Tasmania, the Tasmanian Bar, and Tasmanian Women Lawyers.
Ms Mooney is also an accredited mediator and regularly conducts mediations in family law matters.
Greg Barns SC
Barns has been a prominent figure in the Australian legal scene for decades and has been a member of the Tasmania Bar since 2003.
Barns was given title of Senior Counsel in Tasmania in 2020.
One of Barns’ most important cases was Pickett v Tasmania in 2011 in which he was junior counsel to Stephen Estcourt QC in the defence of a prisoner who was found to have his human rights breached.
Barns was also a key defence barrister in Australia’s biggest terrorism trial in 2008 involved twelve Muslim men being accused of terrorism.
Barns has also been an Adviser to, and big supporter of Julian Assange and WikiLeaks and has called for Australians to support Assange.
Barns is also a passionate advocate of the Justice Reform Initiative which adopts the slogan ‘Jailing is failing,’ and which aims to see better outcomes in Tasmania’s criminal justice system.
Barns graduated from Monash University in 1985 and said law was always a passion due to family ties.
“My father was a member of the legal profession in Melbourne and I always had an interest in justice and politics,” Barns said.
“I’m probably most passionate about human rights- in particular criminal law, along with immigration law which often intersects with human rights,” he said.
“The most satisfying cases are when we have been able to represent asylum seekers and other individuals from the government trying to deport them.”
Among his courtroom achievements, Barns has also written four books on Australian politics, is a Spokesman of the Australian Lawyers Alliance, a member of the Australian Defence Lawyers Alliance and Chair of the Tasmanian Prisoners Legal Service.
Daryl Coates SC
Daryl Coates SC is Tasmania’s Director of Public Prosecutions.
He was appointed in November 2015 after acting in the position since November 2013.
Mr Coates graduated from the University of Tasmania in 1985 with a combined degree of Bachelor of Arts/Bachelor of Law and in 1986 he began work at the DPP as Crown Counsel in the area of summary prosecutions, child protection work, coronial inquests, indictable crime and criminal appeals.
In 2000 he was appointed a Crown Law Officer pursuant to s1 of the Criminal Code enabling him to sign indictments on behalf of the Crown.
Mr Coates was appointed a Senior Counsel in 2003 and he was appointed Assistant Director of Public Prosecutions in March 2004 where he was responsible for the criminal section of the Office of the DPP.
In September 2008 he was appointed as Deputy Chairperson of the Legal Profession Disciplinary Tribunal and in 2009 he was appointed as Chairman.
Arguably Mr Coate’s most high profile case is the appeal of Sue Neill-Fraser’s murder conviction.
Neill-Fraser was convicted of murdering her partner Bob Chappell in 2009 and has served around half of her 23 year prison sentence. The matter is still in the courts.
Among his other high profile cases, Coates was involved in the prosecution of then deputy premier Bryan Green over the Tasmanian Compliance Corporation affair which ended in hung juries in 2007 and 2008.
Coates was also the crown prosecutor in the conviction of Stephen Roy Randage who was found guilty of two murders and sentenced to 48 years in Prison- the trial was one of Tasmania’s longest ever criminal trials.
Roland Browne
Roland Browne is a Legal Aid lawyer and founder of the Coalition for Gun Control who was involved with the Port Arthur response in 1996.
Mr Browne works in the civil and criminal areas, including administrative review, anti-discrimination, environment and planning and federal workers compensation.
“In the criminal area he once had a busy practice defending forest protesters and other civilly disobedient people,” his profile on Fitzgerald and Browne reads.
“That area of practice went quiet after the forest agreement was reached in 2013. That may well all change as the State Liberal Government is doing its best to open up contentious forest areas and to introduce a new range of offences to curtail the activities of forest protestors.”
Mr Browne is currently representing the Bob Brown Foundation in their efforts against mining company MMG’s plans to establish a new tailings dam in the Tarkine rainforest.
Linda Mason SC
Linda Mason SC is Tasmania’s Deputy Director of Public Prosecutions.
She was appointed to the newly created position in February 2016.
Ms Mason graduated from the University of Tasmania with a combined degree in science and law in 1993 and was admitted to practice in 1994.
Ms Mason has over 20 years of experience practising in criminal law, with particular expertise in the prosecution of sexual assault crimes and crimes of violence.
Ms Mason was appointed a Crown Law Officer in 2010 and in 2018 she broke through one of the most entrenched glass ceilings in the legal profession after being appointed Senior Counsel for her outstanding work in the profession.
At the time of her appointment Ms Mason said she was thrilled she could be an example for other women.
“It’s pretty special to be one of three women silks in the state, to an extent I’m quite surprised, but I suppose it illustrates that women are now realising they can do both,” she said.
“Hopefully I can now be a mentor for other women who work tirelessly developing their professional careers while trying to juggle a home life and family.”
Philip Jackson
Philip Jackson SC practices civil, common law/personal injury, commercial, equity and trusts, property and conveyancing among other fields at Malthouse Chambers in Battery Point.
He is chairman of the Tasmanian Disciplinary Tribuanl and member of the Professional Ethics Committee and Law Council of Australia.
Mr Jackson is also a past president of the Tasmanian Bar Association and Law Society of Tasmania and in 2015 was appointed Silk.
Ken Read
Ken Read is also a Senior Counsel at Malthouse Chambers in Battery Point.
He practices in a number of fields, including civil — common law/personal injury, commercial, professional negligence, public/administrative law and workers’ compensation.
Mr Read was admitted as a solicitor in 1978 before being called to the Bar in 1999 and appointed a Senior Counsel in 2012.
Before coming to the bar, Mr Read was a partner at Jennings Elliott for more than 20 years.
He was appointed Silk on April 2, 2012.
Some of the high profile cases he’s involved in include the TT-Line pony deaths case and the battle over well-known property developer Moe Sultan’s estate.
Bruce McTaggart
Bruce McTaggart SC was admitted to practice on August 1986 and works from Old Mercury Chambers in Macquarie Street.
Mr McTaggart works in a number of fields, including alternative dispute resolution, building/construction, commercial and appellate.
He was a former partner at Jennings Elliott / Ogilvie Jennings between 1990 and 2004 and president of the Tasmanian Bar from March 2013 to March 2016.
He’s currently a Tasmanian representative on the Australian Advocacy Training Counsel.
Chris Gunson
Chris Gunson SC joined the Bar in 2005 after seven years as a barrister and solicitor engaged in civil and criminal litigation. He is also admitted in Victoria.
Mr Gunson is the current president of the Tasmanian Bar Association and is a barrister for Derwent and Tamar Chambers in Hobart.
He has more than 18 years experience and has appeared as counsel at trial and on appeal in the Supreme Court of Tasmania, the Supreme Court of Victoria, the Federal Court of Australia and the High Court of Australia.
Mr Gunson practises widely in administrative tribunals, particularly relating to professional discipline, complex environment law matters and has a strong interest in international humanitarian law.
He is a former Tasmanian chairperson of the Australian Red Cross International Humanitarian Law Committee, an Army Reserve legal officer and a qualified mediator.
Shaun McElwaine
Shaun McElwaine was appointed as Senior Counsel on May 8, 2013, practising in commercial litigation; arbitration; corporations and securities; equity, trusts and estates; land use planning and development and environmental law; local government among other fields.
Mr McElwaine has been involved in some very high profile cases including the Cambria Green mega-development, the Mt Wellington/kunanyi cable car proposal and the will dispute of property developer Moe Sultan.
He has represented or fought against organisations including Tassal, Huon Aquaculture, The Wilderness Society, Bob Brown Foundation, Tarkine National Coalition, Gunns Ltd, Southern Cross Care, Sultan Holdings and a number of Tasmanian councils in various planning matters.
Tim Bugg
Tim Bugg is managing director and one of the principals at Dobson Mitchell Allport in Hobart.
He is a highly experienced dispute resolution lawyer and practises primarily as a member of the firm’s family and relationships law team, with a background in civil litigation disputes, including for personal injury and property damage claims.
Mr Bugg advises in anti-discrimination disputes arising from employment, service provider and other relationships. He has regularly appeared as an advocate and counsel in courts and tribunals, including in the Supreme Court of Tasmania, the Federal Circuit Court of Australia and the Family Court of Australia.
He chairs and has chaired a broad range of state and national boards and committees for legal, community and other organisations and has led and represented the Australian legal profession both nationally and internationally as president of the Law Council of Australia.
He is the first Australian to have been appointed as the non-US lawyer member of the Council of the International Section of the American Bar Association. He is a former chair of the International Legal Services Advisory Council.
In 2014 Mr Bugg was made a member of the Order of Australia in recognition of his services to the legal profession and the community generally.
He is a fellow of the Australian Academy of Law.
Paul Kuzis
Paul Kuzis has been a commercial partner of Hobart firm Murdoch Clarke since July 1992.
He is experienced in commercial, property and corporate law, financing, general commercial advice and due diligence programs and is a highly regarded and well respected member of the profession.
Mr Kuzis has been a member of the Board of the Solicitors’ Trust since 1998.
David Shelley
David Shelley is managing principal of Page Seager.
He works with property owners and developers, managed funds and state-owned corporations, providing advice on infrastructure projects, property acquisitions and disposals, due diligence, property development, commercial leasing and large scale community housing projects.
He is also the Honorary Consul for France and for Germany in Tasmania.
Examples of recent significant transactions include acquisition and sale of shopping centres for ASX listed clients in Victoria, New South Wales, Queensland and Tasmania; acquisition and management of 500 property community housing portfolio from the Tasmanian State Government; a 600 lot staged subdivision for a major property developer and City Council CBD redevelopment project.
Mr Shelley regularly provides training and seminars to the Real Estate Institute of Tasmania and Property Council of Australia (Tasmania Division).
Anna Grant
Anna Grant is managing partner at Butler McIntyre and Butler in Hobart’s CBD.
Ms Grant returned to Hobart in 2000 after specialising for three years in telecommunications leasing with legal firms in Melbourne and United Kingdom. She then established a practice in family and relationship law at Butler McIntyre & Butler.
She became a Partner at Butler McIntyre & Butler in 2004 and is now serving in the role as Managing Partner.
She is on the independent Children’s Lawyer Panel for the Family Court of Australia, the Federal Circuit Court of Australia and the Magistrates Court (child welfare jurisdiction), co-ordinates and lectures the Family Law Unit for the post graduate Legal Practice Course conducted by the University of Tasmania centre for legal studies.
Louise Mollross
Louise Mollross is one of the Partners at Ogilvie Jennings and was admitted to the Supreme Court of Tasmania in 1987.
A barrister and solicitor, she specialises in family law but also has extensive experience in commercial law, conveyancing, commercial transactions and mortgages.
Ms Mollross also works in the area of wills and estates and acts as an independent children’s lawyer in the Family Court of Australia and the Federal Circuit Court of Australia and as a child representative in the Magistrates Court.
She is a member of the Law Society of Tasmania, the Family Law section of The Law Council of Australia, the Australian Institute of Family Law Mediators and a committee member of the Family Law Practitioners Association of Tasmania, a member of the Law Society of Tasmania Family Law Committee and Child Protection Committee.
Michael O’Farrell
Michael O’Farrell SC is Tasmania’s Solicitor-General.
Mr O’Farrell has held the office of Solicitor-General since September 2014, assisted in the provision of advice by a small team of legal practitioners.
Graduating from UTAS in 1983, Mr O’Farrell was a partner with law firm Dobson, Mitchell and Allport from 1990-2002 before joining the Bar in 2002. He was appointed a Senior Counsel in 2009.
The role includes providing legal advice to ministers, agencies and instrumentalities of the Crown and representing the state in any constitutional litigation.
One of the important features of the advice provided by the Solicitor-General is that government must accept his advice as accurately stating the law. This provides the government with legal certainty and highlights the importance of this office in the legal system in Tasmania.
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