Before the Court - Deakin Law Students' Society

Join Ava and Emilia as they speak to Ali Abachi. Ali Abachi is a senior associate within the Commodities Group and Litigation Team at HFW, in the Melbourne office. Within this area, Ali predominately specialises in insolvency, construction and broader contractual disputes. Throughout his career Ali has acted for both small and large companies, as well as financial service providers and high net worth individuals, with many of his matters going on to set important precedent in the world of Australian Corporate Law.     Ali Completed a Bachelor of Laws and Bachelor of Arts (majoring in International Relations & Affairs) at Deakin University in 2013. He then went on to study a Masters of Law, specialising in International Commercial Law at the Australian National University in 2021.

Join Ava and Luke as they speak to Marco Angele. Marco Angele is currently a principal lawyer at Marshalls + Dent + Wilmoth Lawyers. A firm that practises in several areas such as commercial law, family law, litigation and dispute resolution, property law and estate planning, as well as niche practice areas such as entertainment law, hotels and tourism law and education law. Within the firm, Marco predominantly specialises in the fields of entertainment law, influencer and social media law, and corporate law, as well as the start-up and scale-up of companies. Marco completed a Bachelor of Arts at Melbourne University in 2010 and subsequently obtained his Juris Doctor in 2013. He then went on to complete his Graduate Diploma in Legal Practice with Leo Cussen in 2014, being admitted to practice in 2015.

Join Ava and Will as they speak to Patrice Fitzgerald. Patrice Fitzgerald is the founder, director and Principal Lawyer at Safe Space Legal, the first firm in Australia to practice exclusively in child safety and safeguarding law. She has dedicated her career to protecting children and vulnerable people and works with organisations to ensure children and vulnerable people are kept safe. Patrice completed a Bachelor of Laws at La Trobe University in 2004 and was subsequently admitted to practice in 2006. She has also obtained additional qualifications in investigations and interviewing children. Alongside her role at Safe Space Legal, Patrice is also a Sessional Member of the Victorian Civil & Administrative Tribunal in the Review and Regulation List (Child Welfare).

Join Ava and Georgia as they speak to Emma Murphy. Emma Murphy is currently an Associate at Maurice Blackburn and practices exclusively in the field of medical negligence. She is located at the Bendigo office and is currently the only regionally based medical negligence lawyer in Victoria at Maurice Blackburn. This experience has made her very passionate about attracting young lawyers into the regions.   Emma completed her studies in 2013 at Monash University, graduating with a Bachelor of Laws majoring in Medical and Health Law, as well as a Bachelor of Science majoring in Development Biology and Genetics. Emma then went on to complete her Practical Legal Training at the Coroner's Court of Victoria and was subsequently admitted to practice in 2014.    Emma is passionate about equality and accessibility within the healthcare system. Due to this passion and her interest in bridging public knowledge between health, science and the law, Emma was eager to commence a career in medical negligence law.

Join Emilie and Evan as they speak to Rebekah O'Sullivan. Rebekah O’Sullivan is an award-winning entertainment, intellectual property, and immigration lawyer. Rebekah specialises in the film, television, theatre, and music industries. Her representations include Oscar-award-winning talents, such as Natalie Portman, Matt Damon, Cate Blanchett, and Chris Hemsworth, as well as platinum-selling musicians, such as Liam Payne and Tones and I. Rebekah holds a Juris Doctor from Bond University and the University of California, as well as a Masters of Legal Practice. She also holds a Bachelor of Arts, training at one of London’s most prestigious acting institutions, working as an actor and acting coach. Rebekah has also won the legal excellence award for Queensland solicitor of the year, was appointed as a distinguished fellow of the Royal Society of Arts in London and has been consistently ranked on Doyle’s list as a leading lawyer for the past four years. Rebekah, outside of entertainment law, offers her services pro bono, as a senior lawyer at Bond University’s Immigration Clinic.