Barrister Type: Junior Counsel

Admission Dates

• NSW Bar: 1989

Qualifications

• UNSW BA
• UNSW LLB

Specific Areas of Practice

• Criminal Law

Professional Memberships

• NSW Bar

Admission Dates
Legal Profession: 2001
NSW Bar: 2018

Prior to coming to the Bar, Denise worked as a solicitor for a number of years both in private practice and also in several top-tier corporate law firms practising in litigation and arbitration.

Denise has a range of experience in multiple jurisdictions, at both trial and appellate levels.

Denise regularly appears in the Family Court and Federal Circuit Court with a substantial and vast amount of experience in parenting and financial/property cases.

In addition, Denise appears as Counsel for the Independent Children’s Lawyer.

She also appears in child protection law matters and appeals, including Childrens Court, District Court and Supreme Court.

She currently is a sitting committee member of the Professional Family,  Care and Adoption Panel of the NSW Bar Association.

Within the criminal jurisdiction, she practices and acts for both Defence and for the Prosecution.

Denise has an interest in forensic medicine and also regularly appears in the mental health tribunal , mainly acting in mental health inquiries, appeals and for forensic patients.

Denise is an accredited arbitrator, both Australia wide and internationally.

She is also a member of the Illinois Bar Association, and a former casual academic.

She enjoys running and hopes to one day run in the Boston Marathon.

Principal areas of practise

• Family Law
• Criminal Law
• Mental health
• Regulatory Prosecutions
• Corporate Governance

Admission dates
Legal Profession: September 2020
NSW Bar: August 2021

Having joined Trust Chambers as a Research Assistant to Anthony Bellanto QC in early 2020, Robert has had extensive experience in the preparation and running of complex Trial and Appellate matters across all criminal jurisdictions in NSW; from the Children’s/Local Court to Conviction and Sentence Appeals in the NSWCCA.

Having been called to the Bar in 2021, Robert has continued to practice predominantly in criminal law, however is available to work across a number of areas including family law. He is available for both advice work and in-court advocacy as required.

Robert has a particular interest in complex evidentiary matters including the admissibility of Tendency and Coincidence evidence in criminal proceedings, having co-authored a paper with Anthony Bellanto QC and Catherine Lin for the College of Law entitled Recent Cases and Developments in Criminal Law, focussing on amendments to Tendency and Coincidence provisions in the Evidence Act.

Although Robert primarily practices in the Sydney Metropolitan Region he is available to work regionally.

Principle Areas of Practice

Criminal Law
Summary and Indictable Hearings – Interlocutory and Final
Bail Hearings
Sentencing
Appellate

Academic Qualifications

BIGS (USYD)
LLB (USYD)

Admission Dates
Legal Profession: 2001
NSW Bar: 2001

Also entitled to practise in: All Australian jurisdictions (State, Territory and Commonwealth)

Principal Areas of Practice
• Criminal Defence Law
• Trial Advocacy
• Sentencing
• Bail
• Coronial Inquests
• Appeals

Professional Background
Prior to being called to the Bar in 2001, Miss Hickleton worked as legal counsel and as a senior commercial manager in the banking, finance and manufacturing sectors.

Jurisdictions
• High Court of Australia (special leave applications as Junior Counsel)
• NSW Court of Criminal Appeal (conviction and sentence appeals)
• Supreme Court of NSW (trials, sentencing, bail applications and interlocutory applications)
• Land and Environment Court of NSW (Class 5 – criminal proceedings)
• District Court of NSW (trials, sentencing and appeals from the Local Court)
• New South Wales Crime Commission (examinations)
• County Court of Victoria (trials and sentencing)
• New South Wales State Coroner’s Court (coronial inquests)
• Local Court of NSW (hearings and committals)

Legal Aid Panels
• Indictable matters
• Complex Criminal matters

Admission Dates
Legal Profession: 1974
NSW Bar: 1988
Admitted to practise before Supreme Court of State of New York, United States of America, 1987
Admitted to practise before the Supreme Court, England & Wales, 1987
Admitted to practise before Supreme Court of Hong Kong solicitor 1988, barrister 2004.

Personal Summary
He has been practising as a barrister in private practice in Hong Kong and Australia in criminal law.

Formerly (1982 – 2012) with the Hong Kong Department of Justice — Senior Assistant Director of Public Prosecutions, Commercial Crime responsible for the advice, preparation and prosecution of major white-collar fraud and bribery cases , intellectual property cases and offences relating to the improper use of computers.
The cases cover a wide field including

• Bank and corporate frauds involving multiple jurisdictions
• Money laundering/asset seizure and forfeiture
• Bribery and corruption cases (ICAC)
• Securities and Futures Commission cases ( criminal)
• Taxation frauds
• Computer crimes, including data theft and child pornography
• Credit card frauds
• Forgery
• Extradition of fraudsters from foreign jurisdictions
• Conducting appeals against conviction and sentence on all criminal offences with a particular emphasis on white collar crimes in the Court of Appeal and on occasion the Hong Kong Court of Final Appeal.

Admission Dates
Legal Profession: 1983
NSW Bar: 1983
Also entitled to practise in all Australian jurisdictions (State, Territory & Commonwealth)

Academic Qualifications
University of Sydney LLB
University of Sydney BEc

Admission Dates
Legal Profession: 1999
NSW Bar: 2004

Admission Dates
Legal Profession:
NSW Bar: 1995

Principal Areas of Practice
• Criminal Law
• Commercial/Equity Law
• Land and Environment Court
• Appellate Advocacy

Academic Qualifications
• BSc (Syd)
• LawD