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+ details >>Complex fraud defence requires lawyers who can manage long investigations, parallel regulatory inquiries, and trials that often run for weeks. Cases turn on documentary interpretation, the prosecution's ability to prove dishonest intent, and the strength of any forensic accounting evidence. Specialist counsel matters because the framing of the defence is set early, often before charge, in responses to ATO information requests, AFP interviews, or ASIC examinations. All lawyers profiled below are recognised by Doyle's Guide and Best Lawyers.
Bill Doogue's practice as a Director of Doogue + George centres on tax fraud, white collar crime, complex commercial crime, and cross-border matters. He has been admitted to practise in Victoria, the High Court of Australia, and New Zealand since 1991, with active practice across the Commonwealth, New South Wales, Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, and Singapore.
His Doyle's Guide ranking sits at Pre-eminent in Criminal Law Defence, the highest tier in the methodology, and he is listed in Best Lawyers for Criminal Defence (2025). The international scope of his practice is unusual among Australian criminal defence lawyers and is particularly relevant where matters involve foreign agencies, evidence held overseas, or extradition issues.
The distinguishing feature for this category is Doogue's ability to manage a brief at scale. He has received the CCH technology award for database design, reflecting a systems-driven approach to complex litigation, and runs the Australian Criminal Lawyers Conference, which functions as a national gathering of senior criminal defence practitioners. For document-heavy matters with cross-jurisdictional elements, that infrastructure makes a measurable difference.
Commercial crime, regulatory defence, and complex fraud sit at the centre of Howard Rapke's practice. As a Partner at Holding Redlich and the firm's National Head of Disputes, he brings more than 30 years of experience across Victoria and Federal jurisdictions. He was recognised by Best Lawyers for Criminal Defence in 2017 and is listed by Doyle's Guide as Leading in administrative law (2023).
The seniority of his firm role and his administrative law standing make him particularly relevant for briefs that move between regulatory enforcement and criminal prosecution. Rapke is known among peers for a negotiator's approach, with the strategic judgment that comes from running large disputes alongside criminal defence work over a long career.
As Principal of Tony Hargreaves and Associates, Tony Hargreaves practises in serious criminal defence with the senior practitioner running matters directly rather than through delegation. He is listed by Doyle's Guide as Pre-eminent in Criminal Law Defence (2026) and brings more than 30 years of experience to the briefs he runs.
The Pre-eminent tier sits at the top of the Doyle's hierarchy and is reserved for the most senior Victorian criminal defence practitioners. Hargreaves practises in both Victorian and Federal jurisdictions and operates as solicitor advocate and instructor. The combination of a focused boutique structure and Pre-eminent recognition is itself a relevant signal for referrers assessing senior representation.
Practising as Partner and Director of Shaun Pascoe Criminal Law, Shaun Pascoe heads the Victorian criminal defence boutique that bears his name. He is listed by Doyle's Guide as Leading in drink driving and traffic (2025), an area in which sustained peer recognition is the relevant marker of standing.
Pascoe's dual solicitor-advocate and instructor role means he can run contested matters at hearing personally or brief counsel where strategy requires. Heading his own firm means continuity of representation, with the same practitioner conducting the matter from intake through to resolution.
David Barrese is a Director of David Barrese & Associates, the Victorian criminal defence firm that bears his name. He operates as both solicitor advocate and instructor.
Heading the firm as Director means continuity of representation, with the same practitioner conducting the matter from intake through to resolution. The dual solicitor-advocate and instructor role provides flexibility on whether to appear personally at hearing or brief counsel as the matter requires.
Selection of counsel in this category depends on matter type, jurisdiction, and stage of proceedings. Early engagement of senior counsel materially affects outcomes, particularly where decisions made at the investigation or charge stage shape the options available later. The practitioners profiled above represent a starting point for informed referral within Victorian criminal defence.