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State prosecutor appointed WA DPP
This week, Robert Owen began his five-year term as Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), a position that Attorney-General John Quigley had affirmed.
Keonia Swift
To date, Mr Owen had been acting as DPP for the past three months, succeeding Amanda Forrester SC, who held the position for five years prior to her appointment as a Supreme Court judge on 1 July 2022.
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Prior to that, in 2008, Mr Owen, a former police and intelligence officer with the Western Australia Police Force and the Corruption and Crime Commission, was licenced to practice law.
First establishing Owen Criminal Lawyers in 2011, he then joined the Aboriginal Legal Service of Western Australia in 2013 as counsel, managing a sizable criminal caseload.
Mr Owen served as a senior state prosecutor and acting senior consultant state prosecutor for the Office of the DPP between May 2019 and May 2022, managing complex court matters and assisting other prosecutors.
To date, Mr Owen has overseen senior prosecutors and their cases as head of a trial team in his role as acting senior consultant state prosecutor.
Attorney-General John Quigley is pleased to announce Mr Owen’s appointment as the Director of Public Prosecutions for Western Australia.
Commenting further, Attorney-General Quigley said: “Mr Owen was selected from a highly competitive field of candidates due to his ability to not only manage a large office, but also to implement innovative ideas and deliver improvements in the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions.
“He has discharged his responsibilities as acting Director of Public Prosecutions, and immediately prior to this as acting senior consultant state prosecutor, with exceptional skill and competence.
“Mr Owen has been instrumental in the effective and professional representation of WA in complex superior court matters, including homicide and corruption cases.”
