Chris O'Neill

Profile

Christopher O’Neill was admitted to practice in the Supreme Court of Victoria in 1979. He began his career as a solicitor in general practice. He joined the Victorian Bar in 1991, practising in various areas of common law, including personal injury actions, torts, insurance law, medical negligence claims, professional disciplinary tribunals, and Coronial Inquests. He also regularly undertook mediations in those areas.

In 2007, he was appointed as a Judge of the County Court, where he served in both common law and criminal jurisdictions. He held the position of Judge in charge of the Common Law Division from 2015 to 2018 and served as the Judge in charge of the Appeals and Post Sentence Applications List from 2019 to 2021.

Over the years, he has taught advocacy as part of the Victorian Bar’s South Pacific Advocacy Training Program in Papua New Guinea and the Solomon Islands. He has also lectured in the Victorian Bar’s Bar Readers’ Course and taught judgment writing within the County Court, through the Judicial College of Victoria and to various other legal institutions.

He retired from the County Court Bench in December 2021. He was appointed a sessional member of the Post Sentence Authority in 2022. In 2023, he was appointed to the Judicial Services Commission to investigate matters under the Judicial Commission of Victoria Act 2016.

He has commenced practice as a mediator, focusing on medical negligence, common law in particular personal injury, institutional abuse and professional liability claims.