Sam Norton has over 20 years of experience in criminal law having been admitted to practice in 2001. He has been an accredited criminal law specialist since 2008 and a partner of Stary Norton Halphen since 2010. Sam has been recognised by Doyles Guide as a Preeminent Criminal Defence Lawyer for consecutive years and a Leading Criminal Lawyer in Australia

Throughout his career, Sam has handled thousands of serious cases. His decision making and advocacy are his primary areas of expertise. The majority of his work is for clients that are pleading not guilty, and Sam draws upon his skills as both a solicitor and advocate to defend people in contested hearings in the Magistrates’ Court, or before a Judge and Jury in the Supreme Court or County Court. He appears in trials and plea hearings for people charged with the full range of serious crimes including; murder and manslaughter, culpable and dangerous driving, drug importation and trafficking and serious sexual matters. He has significant experience in representing people accused of white collar crime including having acted in multiple foreign bribery cases and many fraud related matters.

Sam is a mentor to many lawyers, both at Stary Norton Halphen and in the broader criminal law.

In addition to his legal work, Sam is also a member of the executive committee of Liberty Victoria, an organisation engaged in the advancement of human rights. In that role, Sam advocates for the rights of individuals facing human rights violations in Australia and internationally. Sam is a former Co-Chair of the Criminal Law Section of the Law Institute of Victoria (LIV). In 2015 he received a Service Award from the Law Institute in recognition of his outstanding contribution to the LIV and to the profession. Sam has also previously been a Volunteer at the Inner Melbourne Legal Service.

Sam believes that practising criminal law provides an opportunity to assist people when coming up against the exercise of power by the state. It is vital that all people in our community are afforded quality legal representation, and that is never more important than in Criminal Law. This area of law gives him exposure to the broadest possible cross section of our community and a chance to help members across that spectrum.

Despite the intensity of his work as a criminal lawyer, Sam is deeply motivated by every single case he is involved in, and brings his experience and skill to each task in order to achieve the best outcome.

The Kim McFarlane is the proud principal of McFarlane Criminal Lawyers and an Accredited Specialist in Criminal Law. Kim has over 15 years’ experience in the areas of criminal law including driving offences, all indictable matters from murder to criminal damage and everything in between, Victims of Crime and Intervention Order matters. Kim deems it an honour to be part of the legal profession and deals with all matters in a professional manner but with the passion to get the required results. Kim prides herself on her strong work ethic and a burning desire to succeed.

McFarlane Criminal Lawyers represents their clients from the beginning to the end and if necessary, will brief some of Victoria’s top barristers and Queens Counsel. Kim loves mentoring young lawyers and individuals as her core values are empowerment as well as justice and loyalty. Kim McFarlane is a member of many Gippsland boards both in the past and present. She gives back to the community and meets with any group to discuss areas of law that may interest your relevant community organisation or group at any time including but not limited to Infringements and Youth Law.

The team at McFarlane Criminal Lawyers gives back to the community through sponsorship and donations this includes local sporting clubs and being the Patron Partner of Olivia’s Place.

Damian McNally is a holder of a Bachelor of Laws from Bond University and a Graduate Diploma of Legal Practice with the College of Law. Once qualified, he worked in various roles in small to medium sized law firms and specialised in commercial law.

He was admitted in the Supreme Court of Victoria and the High Court of Australia in 2010 and 2011 respectively.

In order to fulfil his desire to pursue his life-long passion for advocacy and social justice, Damian commenced as a Criminal Defence Lawyer with Michael J. Gleeson & Associates in 2011. He was promoted to Senior Associate in 2014 and he also achieved the status of an Accredited Specialist in Criminal Law by the Law Institute of Victoria in 2016. Reflective of his outstanding success rate over the years for thousands of clients facing criminal investigation and prosecution, he became Principal Lawyer in 2018.

His comprehensive experience in criminal law has had a particular emphasis on the following:

• Driving offences;
• Drug related offending (including trafficking, importation and manufacturing);
• Family violence and intervention orders;
• Diversion applications;
• Complex bail applications; and
• Trials in the County Court and Supreme Court.

Damian’s strong enthusiasm for criminal law is highly evident and is reflected in his dedication to his clients. He prides himself on his successful results for clients for all matters and has attained a reputation as one of Victoria’s leading criminal lawyers.

Manny graduated from the University of New South Wales with Honours in 2014, and excelled particularly in the areas of Criminal and Human Rights Law. While still a student, Manny worked for the defence team of Mustapha Badreddine, one of five people charged with terrorism offences at the Special Tribunal for Lebanon in The Hague. He also completed research stints with Professors from the University of Amsterdam and for the Oxford International Criminal Law Database.

Shortly after being admitted to practice, he joined Emma Turnbull Lawyers in 2015, and immediately began to hone his skills as a solicitor advocate. In 2017 Manny was promoted to a Senior Lawyer position within the firm, and in 2019 he was recognized as a Doyle’s Guide rising star in criminal law.

In 2020 he was acknowledged as an Accredited Specialist in Criminal Law with the Law Institute of Victoria, and in 2021 he was promoted to partner at Emma Turnbull lawyers.

Manny is admitted to practice in the Supreme Court of Victoria, and has built up over many years an array of advocacy experiences. He appears in all Court jurisdictions, and examples of the kinds of complex matters that he has recently appeared in as solicitor-advocate are as follows:

• Multi-day committal hearings;
• Appeals against sentence in the County Court;
• County and Supreme Court plea hearings;
• County and Supreme Court bail applications;
• Section 198B pre-trial cross-examination of witnesses in the County Court;
• Appearing as junior counsel in criminal trials in the County Court;
• Review of supervision order matters under the Serious Offenders Act in the County Court.

Manny has expanded his advocacy work in recent years with appearances on behalf of witnesses in Royal Commission Public Hearings, supplementing this important advocacy work with detailed and complex written submissions.

Manny has also had carriage of a number of high-profile Supreme Court and Court of Appeal matters, and has secured excellent outcomes for his clients in these matters.

Prior to being a solicitor, Manny gained extensive experience working at a variety of community legal centres in Sydney and Melbourne. The skill he has in developing rapport and trust in clients is matched by a total dedication to his work and a keen eye for detail.

Jordana Fayman has been working exclusively in criminal law for more than 15 years.

Prior to establishing Fayman Lawyers, Jordana was employed by a number of prominent legal practices, most recently at partnership level.

She enjoys a reputation as a tenacious lawyer who fights hard for her clients and is known for her dedicated, diligent and determined approach. She prides herself on being a passionate advocate with a strong work ethic. It is a combination of these skills and experience that has proven over time to deliver outstanding results for her clients.

Jordana has acted in many high profile cases and frequently appears in the Supreme, County, Magistrates’ and Children’s Courts, in a wide variety of proceedings.