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Senior counsel appointed to WA Supreme Court
A senior counsel has been appointed as a judge on the Supreme Court of Western Australia.
Keonia Swift
Sam Vandongen worked as a general litigator and business attorney before becoming a Crown prosecutor for the West Australian Director of Public Prosecutions in 1996.
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Since 2008, Mr Vandongen has been practising as a barrister in the areas of criminal law and commercial litigation, and he has substantial trial experience.
Appointed to senior counsel in 2010, he has participated in over 170 cases before the West Australian Court of Appeal and the High Court of Australia.
Mr Vandongen became a Crown prosecutor for the West Australian Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) from 1996 to 2004. To date, he was admitted to practice in Western Australia thirty years ago.
Highlighting his travels interstate to serve as a Crown prosecutor in NSW; he served for two years before returning to Western Australia in 2006 as a consultant state prosecutor.
Mr Vandongen received the Attorney-General’s Community Service Law Award in 2017 for his pro bono work, which includes representing a man wrongfully convicted of manslaughter.
West Australian Attorney-General John Quigley congratulated Mr Vandongen on his appointment.
“He is highly regarded in the legal profession and brings with him a mountain of experience as both a prosecutor and defence counsel in trials at all levels.
“His impressive record in many cases in the High Court, Court of Appeal, Supreme Court and other jurisdictions makes him an exemplary choice for this role,” he said.
As of 2 November 2022, Mr Vandongen will take over for Justice Stephen Hall, who has moved on to become a judge of the West Australian Court of Appeal.
