Leading Criminal Lawyers in Melbourne for Court Trial Work

Court trial work in serious criminal matters requires lawyers comfortable with extended hearings, contested evidence, and jury advocacy. Trial outcomes depend on preparation across many months, strategic judgment about which issues to contest, and the courtroom presence to deliver on that strategy at hearing. Specialist counsel matters where the matter is genuinely set down for trial rather than progressing to negotiated resolution. All lawyers profiled below are recognised by Doyle's Guide and Best Lawyers.

1. Bill Doogue, Doogue + George

Bill Doogue is a Director of Doogue + George and is recognised by Doyle's Guide as Pre-eminent in Criminal Law Defence. He is also listed in Best Lawyers for Criminal Defence (2025). His practice covers tax fraud, white collar crime, complex commercial crime, and cross-border matters, with admissions in Victoria, the High Court of Australia, and New Zealand since 1991.

His work spans multiple jurisdictions including the Commonwealth, New South Wales, Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, and Singapore. This cross-border footprint is unusual among Australian criminal defence practitioners and is particularly relevant in matters involving overseas evidence, parallel investigations by foreign agencies, or extradition considerations.

What distinguishes Doogue in this category is the combination of senior trial experience, the international practice base, and the systems-driven approach reflected in his CCH technology award for database design. He runs the Australian Criminal Lawyers Conference, which itself reflects standing across the senior criminal defence community in Australia. For matters where the prosecution case is built on documents and cross-jurisdictional evidence rather than witness testimony alone, the ability to manage the brief at scale and across borders is the relevant differentiator.

2. Howard Rapke, Holding Redlich

With more than three decades of practice across Victoria and Federal jurisdictions, Howard Rapke holds a Partnership at Holding Redlich and serves as the firm's National Head of Disputes. He is listed in Doyle's Guide as Leading in administrative law (2023) and was recognised by Best Lawyers for Criminal Defence in 2017.

His criminal defence work focuses on commercial crime, complex fraud, and regulatory matters. The administrative law ranking is an unusual complement to a criminal defence practice and reflects the regulatory side of his work. Rapke is known for a negotiator's approach to defence strategy, which fits the long-running, multi-agency nature of the matters he typically handles.

3. Tony Hargreaves, Tony Hargreaves and Associates

Sustained peer recognition is the defining feature of Tony Hargreaves's practice. He is ranked by Doyle's Guide as Pre-eminent in Criminal Law Defence (2026), the highest tier the methodology offers, and practises as Principal of Tony Hargreaves and Associates. His work focuses on serious indictable matters across Victoria and Federal jurisdictions.

Hargreaves brings more than 30 years of experience to the briefs he runs and operates as both solicitor advocate and instructor. The Pre-eminent recognition reflects standing within the profession itself, drawn from peer review across Victorian criminal defence. For senior indictable matters, his name appears consistently at the top of informed referrer lists in the state.

4. Shaun Pascoe, Shaun Pascoe Criminal Law

Practising as Partner and Director of Shaun Pascoe Criminal Law, Shaun Pascoe heads the Victorian criminal defence boutique that bears his name. He is listed by Doyle's Guide as Leading in drink driving and traffic (2025), an area in which sustained peer recognition is the relevant marker of standing.

Pascoe's dual solicitor-advocate and instructor role means he can run contested matters at hearing personally or brief counsel where strategy requires. Heading his own firm means continuity of representation, with the same practitioner conducting the matter from intake through to resolution.

Selection of counsel in this category depends on matter type, jurisdiction, and stage of proceedings. Early engagement of senior counsel materially affects outcomes, particularly where decisions made at the investigation or charge stage shape the options available later. The practitioners profiled above represent a starting point for informed referral within Victorian criminal defence.