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Experience

Rowan has a broad practice in public, commercial, common and employment law.

Before coming to the Bar, Rowan served as Counsel Assisting the Commonwealth Solicitor-General, Dr Stephen Donaghue QC, and as Associate to the Hon Justice Virginia Bell AC of the High Court of Australia. He also practised as a commercial solicitor at King & Wood Mallesons and as a senior solicitor in the constitutional and administrative law team at the NSW Crown Solicitor's Office.

Rowan holds degrees in Arts and Law from the University of Melbourne, which he attended as a Commonwealth Scholar, and a Bachelor of Civil Law from the University of Oxford, where he studied as an Allan Myers KC Scholar.

Rowan has served as a Fellow of the Melbourne Law School, Editor of the Oxford University Commonwealth Law Journal and Associate Editor of the Melbourne University Law Review. He has published work in the Australian Journal of Labour Law and is a member of the Australian Association of Constitutional Law and the Australian Institute of Administrative Law. He is also a Committee member of the Public Law Section of the Commercial Bar Association and has previously served on the Victorian Bar's Human Rights Committee.

Rowan read with Kathleen Foley SC and his senior mentor is Philip Solomon KC.

Cases in which Rowan has been briefed to appear include:

Commercial / building and construction law

• Biodiversity Sub TC Pty Ltd v Vaughan Constructions Pty Ltd (led by K Foley SC, for the first third party)
• Aquasure Pty Ltd v Thiess Pty Ltd; Suez Water Pty Ltd v Siemens Ltd (led by P Solomon QC, for the Thiess Degremont joint venture interests)
• 300Q Pty Ltd v Capouleas [2021] VBAB 171; [2022] VBAB 47 (unled, for the interested party)
• Blue Cross Community Care Services Pty Ltd v Grogan [2020] VBAB 74; [2021] VBAB 19; [2021] VBAB 167 (led by C Horan QC, for the applicant)
• DIHAB Pty Ltd v Station Ten Pty Ltd [2020] VBAB 38; [2020] VBAB 64; DIHAB Pty Ltd v Shaw [2020] VBAB 39; [2020] VBAB 69 (unled, for the respondent/first interested party)
• Argyrou v Victorian Building Authority [2019] VSC 721 (led by J Pizer QC, for the plaintiff)
• Oxanda Childcare Pty Ltd v MAAG Developments Pty Ltd, M118/2018, HCASL (led by J Gleeson SC and K Foley for the applicant)

Constitutional law

• Vella v Chief Commissioner of Police (NSW) (2019) 269 CLR 219; [2019] HCA 38 (led by K Walker QC, for the Victorian Attorney-General, intervening)
• Minogue v Victoria (2019) 268 CLR 1; [2019] HCA 31 (led by C Horan QC and A Solomon-Bridge, for the plaintiff)
• Commissioner of Taxation v Thomas (2018) 264 CLR 382; [2018] HCA 31 (led by S Donaghue QC and K Foley, for the Commonwealth Attorney-General, intervening)

Administrative / general public law

• Attorney-General v Temssah [2024] VSC 172; [2024] VSC 328 (led by G Coghlan KC, E Bennett KC and C Tran, with C O'Neil, for the Attorney-General)
• DCL22 v Sage [2022] FCA 1310; [2022] FCAFC 196 (led by S Maharaj KC, for the respondents)
• Heiner v Minister for Home Affairs [2021] FCA 212; [2021] FCA 1125; [2022] FCAFC 81 (unled, for the first respondent)
• Director of Public Prosecutions (Cth) v Brookman [2020] VSC 890R (led by N Robinson QC and A Yuile, for the Crown)
• Medical Board of Australia v Leow [2019] VSC 532 (led by P Solomon QC and S Cash, for the respondent)
• Thomas v The University of Melbourne [2019] VCAT 1043; [2019] VCAT 1723; [2020] VCAT 413 (unled, for the respondent)
  

• Fauna and Flora Research Collective Inc v Secretary, Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning, VSC (led by P Gray QC and K Foley, for the Plaintiff)

Common law

• Keay v Metro Trains Melbourne Pty Ltd [2024] HCASL 16 (led by S Gladman SC, for the Respondent)

Tax / revenue law

• Sladden and Commissioner of Taxation [2023] AATA 3815; [2024] FCAFC 122 (led by G Davies KC, for the Commissioner)
• Beech v Commissioner of State Revenue [2023] VCAT 1363 (unled, for the Applicant)
  
• Trustee for the Lubiana Family Trust and Commissioner of Taxation [2022] AATA 2626 (unled, for the Commissioner)
• Comptroller-General of Customs v Zappia (2018) 265 CLR 416; [2018] HCA 54 (led by S Donaghue QC and D Thomas, for the appellant)

Employment / discrimination law

• Ferrigno v Qantas Airways Limited [2023] FCA 1044 (led by R Dalton KC for the respondent)
• Qube Ports Pty Ltd v Burkhardt [2022] FWC 588; [2022] FWCFB 65 (led by J Tracey, for the appellant)
• Johnson v CUB Pty Ltd [2021] FCAFC 219; [2022] HCASL 83 (led by F Parry QC and J Tracey, for the first respondent)
• Roohizadegan v TechnologyOne Limited (2020) 301 IR 1; [2020] FCA 1729; [2020] FCA 1571; [2020] FCA 1734; (2021) 309 IR 262; [2021] FCAFC 137; [2021] HCASL 249 (led by B Walker AO SC and J Tracey, for the applicant)
• Von Schoeler v Allen Taylor & Co Ltd (t/a Boral Timber) [2019] FCA 941; (2020) 273 FCR 189; [2020] FCAFC 13 (led by J Tracey, for the appellant)

Migration law

• DSN16 v Minister for Immigration and Border Protection [2021] FCA 202 (unled, for the first respondent)
• AGO17 v Minister for Immigration, Citizenship, Migrant Services and Multicultural Affairs [2021] FCCA 278 (appeal dismissed) (unled, for the first respondent)
  
• DOU16 v Minister for Immigration and Border Protection [2019] FCCA 1367; (2019) 272 FCR 358; [2019] FCAFC 212 (unled, for the first respondent)
• Ranouta v Minister for Immigration, Citizenship, Migrant Services and Multicultural Affairs [2019] FCCA 2118; [2020] FCA 235 (unled, for the first respondent)
• AFB17 v Minister for Immigration and Border Protection [2019] FCCA 478 (unled, for the first respondent)

Liability limited by a scheme approved under Professional Standards Legislation