Defence Litigation · Sydney · Canberra · Wollongong
Defended quietly.
Prepared thoroughly.
Run by highly trained, experienced litigation lawyers.
A criminal practice for clients whose matters are serious, whose reputations matter, and who want one experienced lawyer on the file from the first call to verdict.
The lawyer who runs the file
Aaron Kernaghan.
Special Counsel at Good Legal Lawyers and the lawyer who reads the brief, conferences the witnesses, briefs counsel where counsel is needed, and stands at the bar table. The handoff to a junior is the most common failure mode in criminal practice. The firm runs files differently.
The practice
A senior defence lawyer, not a referral desk.
Most firms treat criminal work as volume. We do not. We take a limited number of files each year so that every client gets the attention a serious charge deserves. Briefs are read, witnesses are met, and the strategy is set before the first mention. When the matter calls for senior or junior counsel, we brief carefully and we sit with you through every conference.
The work is selective by design. Indictable matters, sexual offences, serious drug, complex fraud, family violence proceedings with charges in train, and appeals from conviction or sentence. Where another firm is better suited, we say so on the first call.
Read about our firmPractice areas
What we defend.
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Indictable offences
Trial and pre-trial work in the District and Supreme Courts of New South Wales and the Supreme Court of the Australian Capital Territory.
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Sexual offences
Historical and recent allegations. Briefs read line by line. Forensic, medical, and digital evidence tested by an experienced trial advocate.
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Serious drug offences
Supply, manufacture, importation, and Commonwealth trafficking. Search, seizure, and surveillance challenges where the law allows.
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Fraud and white-collar
Allegations against directors, professionals, and senior employees. Discreet conduct, careful witness handling, and clear advice on plea and election.
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Family violence charges
Bail, AVO and FVO defence, and the criminal charges that often run alongside. We act for accused persons only.
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Conviction and sentence appeals
Court of Criminal Appeal in New South Wales, Court of Appeal in the ACT. Honest advice about prospects before fees are taken.
As seen in
A representative selection of recent appearances. See media and recognition for the full list.
Credentials
Where we are admitted, what we are responsible for.
High Court of Australia.
Aaron is admitted to the roll of practitioners in the High Court of Australia and is entitled to appear in High Court matters and to act in proceedings throughout the Australian court system.
Supreme Court of NSW.
Aaron is admitted as a solicitor in New South Wales. The firm appears in the Local, District and Supreme Courts of New South Wales and in the Court of Criminal Appeal.
Professional standing.
Law Society of New South Wales. Law Society of the Australian Capital Territory. Australian Lawyers Alliance. The firm is on the Legal Aid NSW criminal-law panel and on the Office of the Public Guardian and Trustee referral list.
Selected matters annually.
Pro bono work each year by referral from Legal Aid NSW and the Office of the Public Guardian and Trustee. Matters chosen for the public interest in the legal question, not for publicity.
Discretion
What private clients tell us they want.
“I want a lawyer who picks up the phone, who reads the brief himself, and who tells me what is actually likely to happen.” A private client, fraud matter, 2024
Recent matters
A sample of what outcomes look like.
Anonymised outcomes from the firm's matter set. Past results are not a prediction; every brief turns on its own facts.
s 10(1)(b) CRO 9 months, no conviction, no disqualification
CRO with conviction, 3-month initial disqualification, interlock 12 months
s 10(1)(b) CRO 18 months, no conviction (low end of band, TOIP completed)
Latest writing
Insights for clients facing charges.
Plain-English notes on bail, on what to expect in court, and on how to live with conditions while a matter is on foot.
All insights →The hidden cost of a guilty plea you should not enter.
The early-plea discount is real. So is a wrongful conviction. The five hidden costs of a plea that should not have been entered, the narrow appellate path after a plea is in, the duty solicitor problem, and the cases where a plea is the right call.
Read →The hidden cost of a guilty plea you should not enter (ACT).
The ACT companion to the NSW note. The early-plea discount under section 35 of the Crimes (Sentencing) Act 2005 (ACT) is discretionary, not fixed. The hidden costs of a wrongful plea follow the accused in the ACT just as they do in NSW, with one important consequence (the FVO regime) that runs differently.
Read →Why your lawyer is unlikely to give a guarantee.
Anyone who promises an outcome in a criminal matter is selling something other than law. A frank note on what honest forecasting in criminal defence actually sounds like, and the red flags of a lawyer who promises results.
Read →Free guides
Take it with you.
Printable PDFs for the moments you cannot phone us first. The right to silence, what to expect at a first court date, how to live with bail conditions, and what to do when officers arrive after hours. Free, no email required.
What to do if police want to interview you.
A seven-page PDF for accused persons in NSW. The right to silence under section 89 of the Evidence Act 1995 (NSW), the narrow section 89A exception, the doorstep playbook, and the wallet-card script. A4, ~395 kB.
View the guide → · Download the PDF directly →Your first court date.
The dress-code, the order of events on the day, the script your lawyer will use, and what to bring. Written for the days before a first mention at the NSW Local Court. A4, ~395 kB.
View the guide → · Download the PDF directly →Bail conditions survival guide.
Curfews, exclusion zones, non-contact, reporting. How to diarise obligations, what counts as compliance, and how to apply to vary a condition that is impossible to meet. A4, ~395 kB.
View the guide → · Download the PDF directly →After-hours arrest checklist.
The page to hand a family member or housemate before you go to bed. What to do when police arrive after hours, what to record, who to phone, and what the next morning looks like. A4, ~395 kB.
View the guide → · Download the PDF directly →Common questions
Before you phone, the things people ask first.
Plain answers to the questions we hear most often on the first call. Nothing here is legal advice for any particular matter; the conversation that follows the first call is the place for that.
What does the first phone call cost?
Nothing. The first phone call is confidential and free. We use it to understand the matter, to tell you whether we are the right firm for it, and to give you the realistic options. No retainer is opened until you decide to proceed.
Do you take Legal Aid matters?
Yes. The firm is on the Legal Aid NSW criminal-law panel and on the Office of the Public Guardian and Trustee referral list. If your matter is grant-funded, we run it on the same standard of preparation we apply to privately-funded work. If you are unsure whether you are eligible for Legal Aid, the first conversation is the place to work it out.
Where do you appear?
We appear in the Local, District and Supreme Courts of New South Wales and in the Court of Criminal Appeal. The firm also acts in ACT criminal matters in the Magistrates Court and the Supreme Court of the ACT, and in the High Court of Australia where the matter calls for it. Our regular Sydney metropolitan courts include the Downing Centre, Parramatta, Penrith, Burwood, Manly, Newtown, Waverley, Hornsby and Sutherland.
What happens at the first consult?
The first conference is a 30-minute confidential meeting (in person or by phone). You set out the matter. We read whatever paperwork you have (charge sheet, bail forms, AVO documents, search warrant). We tell you the realistic options, the likely timing, and the indicative fee for each path. You take that away and decide whether to proceed. No commitment is made on the call.
Will I always speak to the same lawyer?
Yes. The lawyer who answers the first phone call is the lawyer who reads the brief, conferences the witnesses, briefs counsel where required, and stands at the bar table. There is no junior handoff. If your file is opened with Aaron, your file stays with Aaron from intake to verdict.
First contact
One call. One lawyer. Everything that follows.
If the matter is serious enough that you have found us, it is serious enough to phone. Initial conversations are confidential whether or not we are retained.
Request a confidential consult 0421 717 019