Marion Isobel

Profile

Marion practices in public, administrative, regulatory, criminal and common law.

Marion advises and appears in relation to the investigation, prosecution and defence of criminal, disciplinary and regulatory matters. Her clients include private persons and government, and she regularly acts for the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (Ahpra), Victoria Police, the Department of Justice and Community Safety (DJCS), and the Department of Families, Fairness and Housing (DFFH).  

Marion also appears in common law proceedings in Federal and State courts, including police tort cases.

Public and Administrative Law

Marion has particular expertise in:

• Coronial inquests, and other inquisitorial proceedings such as Royal Commissions and judicial enquiries.
• Judicial review and appellate practice, particularly as it intersects with the criminal and public law, and appeals from VCAT.
• Professional disciplinary proceedings for health practitioners and other professions.
• Working with Children Checks and other professional licencing matters.
• Building and construction investigations, and environmental regulation.
• Human rights, international humanitarian law, and international law, including the export and trade of arms. 

Notable Cases

• Daniel Taylor v Attorney General of the Commonwealth (2018): Appeared before the Full Court of the High Court regarding a private prosecution brought against Aung San Suu Kyi for crimes against humanity, led by Ron Merkel KC.
• Inquests including Inquest into the Death of Veronica Nelson; Inquest into the January 2017 Melbourne Bourke Street event; Inquest into the Death of Kai Hao and Yacqub Khayre (the Brighton Siege). 
• Goode v Common Equity Housing Ltd [2020] VSCA 317: Appeared unled at the VSCA on judicial review from VCAT.

Common Law

Marion advises and appears in common law proceedings, and has a particular expertise in police torts, and torts relating to the treatment of prisoners and those in custody. She acts for both plaintiffs and defendants.

Previously, Marion spent seven years working for the Open Society Foundations in London, where she led teams of international lawyers conducting global strategic litigation on criminal justice, policing, and prevention and accountability for torture.

Criminal Law

• Marion appears in summary and indictable crimes. She acts for both prosecution and defence.
• She has a particular interest in judicial review and appeals in criminal justice matters. 

Notable Cases

• Makrogiannis v Magistrates’ Court of Victoria & Anor [2021] VSC 190: judicial review of the activation of the custodial component of a Drug Treatment Order under s 18ZP(2)(a) of the Sentencing Act 1991 (Vic). 
• DPP v Kenelo [2023] VCC 418 (20 March 2023): appeared unled for defendant in rape trial.

Marion previously worked for the United Nations in Phnom Penh for several years, investigating genocide and other international crimes at the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia. She was a lawyer in the Office of Co-Investigating Judges, building an indictment for trial for senior leaders of the Khmer Rouge.

Qualifications

Marion holds a Masters of Laws, and a Bachelor of Laws with first class honours, from the University of Queensland. She also holds a Graduate Diploma in International Commercial Arbitration from UQ.

Marion read with Ben Ihle KC.