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5 magistrates added to Victoria’s courts
The Andrews Labor government has announced the appointment of five new magistrates: Lucia Raponi, Helen Spowart, David Langton, Brett Sonnet and Gregory Thomas.
Jess Feyder
Attorney-General Jaclyn Symes congratulated the new magistrates and explained the appointments seek to assist in reducing the court backlog. Magistrate Raponi will serve in the Children’s Court, while magistrates Spowart, Langton, Sonnet and Thomas will serve in the Magistrates Court.
Magistrate Spowart was senior Crown prosecutor at the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions in the Northern Territory and, prior to that, was special counsel for Victoria Police.
She has been admitted to the Supreme Courts of Victoria, Northern Territory and NSW and the High Court of Australia and specialised in criminal law.
Magistrate Langton was admitted to the Victorian bar in 2005; he is a barrister with extensive experience in family violence law, criminal law, sexual offences and fraud matters. He served as a prosecuting solicitor at the Office of Public Prosecutions from 2000 to 2001.
Magistrate Sonnet was admitted to the bar in 1991 and worked for the Office of Public Prosecutions from 1998 to 2019, where he held roles including associate Crown prosecutor and Crown prosecutor. Since 2019, he has been at the Victorian bar practising in criminal law.
Magistrate Thomas was principal solicitor at Greg Thomas Barrister and Solicitors from 2007. Prior to this, he was a partner and solicitor advocate at Dowling McGregor Thomas from 2003 to 2007 and held several roles at Victoria Legal Aid from 1992 to 2003 as a duty lawyer, in-house counsel and in management at the criminal law division.
The A-G commented on the appointments: “I’m excited to welcome five new distinguished and deserving lawyers as magistrates to the Victorian judicial system, who bring with them extensive experience.
“Having such a variety of skills on the bench is an important part of our work to make justice fairer for and more accessible to Victorians.
“We are continuing to support our courts to catch up, following the disruptions caused by the global pandemic.”
