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Ballarat and its surrounding region are served by the Ballarat Law Courts, handling both summary and indictable matters. For serious charges in this region, Melbourne-based senior criminal defence practitioners regularly appear, bringing specialist trial experience that the regional bar may not match at the most serious end of the calendar. All lawyers profiled below are established Victorian criminal defence practitioners, with several recognised by Doyle's Guide and Best Lawyers.
Bill Doogue founded Doogue + George Defence Lawyers in 1995 and remains its Director. More than 40,000 prosecutions have been defended through the firm. He was admitted to practice in 1991 and has been an Accredited Criminal Law Specialist since 1998. Doyle's Guide places him at the Pre-eminent tier in Criminal Law Defence and Best Lawyers lists him for Criminal Defence (2025).
Tax fraud, foreign bribery, white collar crime, complex commercial crime, and cross-border matters define the substantive character of his practice. His advocacy record includes appearances before the High Court of Australia and at Royal Commission hearings. Courts across Victoria, New South Wales, Tasmania, and South Australia have seen his practice. He advises clients in Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, and Singapore on criminal and cross-border matters.
He created Crimebase, a precedent-based relational database for criminal law that received the C.C.H. Legal Technology Award. He is among the founding members of the Australian Defence Lawyers Alliance and plays a role in running the Australian Criminal Lawyers Conference. The Broadmeadows Community Legal Centre was chaired by him for over a decade. The Age, The Australian, The Guardian, CNN, and the Daily Mail have each reported on matters from his practice. He places particular emphasis on intervening at the pre-charge stage, working with clients when the most consequential decisions can still be shaped.
Shaun Pascoe is Partner and Director of Shaun Pascoe Criminal Law, the Victorian criminal defence boutique he heads. Doyle's Guide ranks him as Leading in drink driving and traffic for 2025, a specialist recognition built from peer citation in that specific category.
He operates as both solicitor advocate and instructor, conducting matters directly as the named practitioner. The specialist Doyle's Leading recognition, direct-conduct boutique model, and dual advocacy-instructor capacity define his practice for referrers placing drink driving and serious traffic briefs in Victoria.
Tony Hargreaves is Principal of Tony Hargreaves and Associates, with at least 30 years of practice in serious criminal defence across Victorian and Federal jurisdictions. Doyle's Guide ranks him Pre-eminent in Criminal Law Defence for 2026, the guide's most senior recognition in this category, built from peer review within the Victorian criminal defence profession.
He operates as both solicitor advocate and instructor. Heading his own boutique means the named Principal conducts matters directly throughout. That combination of Doyle's Pre-eminent standing, more than three decades of practice, and direct-conduct boutique model satisfies the primary selection criteria for serious indictable briefs in Victoria.
Angus Cameron is Principal of Angus Cameron and Associates, which he heads as both Partner and Director. Doyle's Guide lists him as Recommended in Criminal Law Defence for 2026, a recognition drawn from peer citations within the Victorian criminal defence profession.
He operates as both solicitor advocate and instructor and runs his boutique under his own name. His Doyle's Recommended standing and the direct-conduct boutique structure are the two verified features most relevant to referrers placing Victorian criminal defence briefs.
Selection of counsel depends on the specific charge, the court and jurisdiction, the stage of proceedings, and the particular circumstances of the matter. Early engagement of senior criminal defence representation materially affects outcomes. The practitioners profiled above are a verified starting point for informed referral within Victorian criminal defence.
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