Wednesday, 1 June 2022
The Law Society of Western Australia congratulates the Director of Public Prosecutions, Amanda Forrester SC, on her appointment as a Judge of the Supreme Court of Western Australia. The position is newly created and her appointment to the Court will take effect on 1 July 2022. Senior consultant state prosecutor Robert Owen will act as DPP until a replacement is chosen.
Ms Forrester has more than 25 years’ legal experience, serving mostly as a prosecutor, and was appointed a Senior Counsel in 2016.
She was a Senior State Prosecutor at the Office of Director of Public Prosecutions for Western Australia (ODPP) for ten years before moving interstate to be a Crown Prosecutor at the Office of Public Prosecutions Victoria for four years.
Ms Forrester returned to WA in 2011 to senior roles at the ODPP before becoming the first woman to become the Director of Public Prosecutions in 2017. She was reappointed in April 2022.
In addition to administering the agency, Ms Forrester maintained her connection to the courtroom by appearing for the State as prosecutor in high-profile criminal matters.
Ms Forrester has been a valued and longstanding supporter of the Law Society since her admittance in 1996.
Law Society President Rebecca Lee said, “I warmly congratulate Ms Forrester on her well-deserved appointment to the bench. Throughout her distinguished career, she has demonstrated a high degree of professionalism, integrity, dedication and competence. Ms Forrester’s extensive experience in complex criminal matters makes her ideally suited to her eminent new position as a judge of the Supreme Court. We wish Ms Forrester all the best and thank her for her exemplary service to the Western Australian community.
I would also like to acknowledge that this position is newly created through the WA Government’s Justice Pipeline Model and thank the Attorney General for advocating on behalf of the Legal Profession in Western Australia for additional judicial resources.”
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For comment please contact:
Madeleine McErlain
Manager Corporate Communications
(08) 9324 8650
mmcerlain@lawsocietywa.asn.au
The Law Society of Western Australia is the peak professional association for lawyers in the State. The Society is a not-for-profit association dedicated to the representation of its more than 4,000 members. The Society enhances the legal profession through its position as a respected leader and contributor on law reform, access to justice and the rule of law. The Society is widely acknowledged by the legal profession, government and the community as the voice of the legal profession in Western Australia.
