- Published:
- Tuesday 26 June 2018
The Andrews Labor Government has announced the appointment of senior barrister and former Chief Crown Prosecutor Gavin Silbert QC as Chairperson of the Victoria Legal Aid Panel of Independent Reviewers.
The role of the Panel is to review decisions regarding grants of legal aid by VLA and to ensure the Legal Aid Fund is administered correctly.
Mr Silbert retired as Chief Crown Prosecutor earlier this year, after more than a decade in the role.
An experienced criminal and civil law barrister, Mr Silbert worked at the Victorian Bar from 1990 to 2007, frequently appearing before the Supreme Court, Federal Court, and the High Court of Australia.
He appeared as junior to Jim Kennan SC in the Royal Commission into the Australian Wheat Board and its dealings in Iraq in 2006.
Mr Silbert was a member of the Sentencing Advisory Council from 2007–13 and served as Vice President of the Australian Association of Crown Prosecutors from 2007 to 2016.
Mr Silbert signed the Victorian Bar Roll in 1985 and was appointed Senior Counsel in 2007. He holds a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) and a Bachelor of Laws (Honours) from the University of Western Australia, a Master of Laws from London University and a Bachelor of Civil Law from the University of Oxford.
Mr Silbert replaces the Hon Andrew McIntosh who served on the Panel from 2015.
Quotes attributable to Acting Attorney-General Marlene Kairouz
“Mr Silbert is one of Victoria's most respected barristers and has had a distinguished career dedicated to upholding justice and fairness in Victoria. I congratulate him on his appointment.”
“I also thank Mr McIntosh for his service to the Panel of Independent Reviewers.”