Principal Areas of Practice
Land, Planning and Environment Law:
o Planning and Environment Law
o Property Law
o Compulsory Acquisition and Valuation
Since her appointment in 2017 as a Sessional Member in the Planning & Environment List of the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal, Picha can no longer accept retainers to appear in VCAT. Her appointment has no affect on her practise as a barrister elsewhere where she continues to practise predominately in Queensland and the other States.
She has a current multi-jurisdictional practice and extensive litigation and advisory experience which provide a unique capability to provide high level strategic advice on legislative reform and planning policy. Her ongoing litigation work informs and compliments her advisory and project management capabilities and provides clients with strategic and practical options particularly directed to desired identified outcomes.
She has extensive experience in all aspects of planning processes and advising clients involved in development from both sides of the fence. Her experience extends to advising on large scale tourism projects, green field residential developments, major shopping centre and warehouse developments and projects in environmentally sensitive locations.
Picha's extensive expertise as a barrister and advisor has been established having drawn upon the conduct of planning and environment litigation on behalf of many local governments and developers throughout Victoria, New South Wales and Queensland.
She has authored and conducted many training programs for government officers, councillors and the development industry on a variety of issues including manager responsibilities/due diligence, the Victorian, Queensland and New South Wales Planning Acts, the Commonwealth Environmental Protection and Conservation Biodiversity Act; and prosecution and enforcement officer training.
Picha has also been called on to present addresses at a variety of significant conferences and seminars throughout Australia, such as presentations at seminars on management responsibilities and state based and national planning issues.
In addition to her many legal presentations, Picha has written a variety of manuals on topics involving the Health Act, the Queensland Integrated Development Assessment System, drafting of statutory notices and standard development conditions.
She has served as the Treasurer of the Women’s Planning Network Victoria, been a State Vice President of the Queensland Environmental Law Association and delivers seminars to the Victorian Planning and Environmental Law Association on comparative planning jurisdictional issues.
Administrative Law:
Picha has extensive experience in matters involving Administrative Law and all aspects of Judicial and Merits Review.
Her main areas of practice in public law, comprises:
Freedom of Information Law
Picha is considered one of the country's best practitioners in this area. She has extensive legal and practical knowledge of the various State and Federal statutory regimes concerning FOI.
Her practice includes advice and appearances involving:
Gambling Regulation and Control
Picha has practised in this specialist area for a number of years and has gained significant and extensive experience as Counsel assisting the Gaming Licensing Project of the Victorian Commission for Gambling and Liquor Regulation.
The Commission is the independent statutory authority that administers Victoria’s liquor and gambling laws.
Picha’s role as Counsel Assisting the project covered a period of almost 12 months advising the Commission and appearing at hearings.
Family Law:
Since commencing practice at the Bar Picha has appeared in a number of significant cases (in her own right and also being led by Queen's Counsel and Senior Counsel).
She has also appeared in the Family Court of Australia in corporate and property matters and the Federal Circuit Court in both its family and general jurisdictions but principally in the following areas:
• Financial Agreements
• Property Disputes
• Parenting Disputes
• Spousal Maintenance
• Crimes Family Violence
• Intervention Orders
• Defacto Property Disputes
Commercial Law:
In the general commercial/corporate law area her matters have involved interlocutory applications, trials and appeals in all aspects of commercial law and in Bankruptcy and Corporations Act matters. These have covered Corporate Governance and Insolvency Law issues in the Corporate Insolvency area which have provided significant case development in cases under Part 5.3A Corporations Act in respect of administrations and insolvencies. In one of these matters she was junior counsel when the matter went to the High Court of Australia.
Professional Achievements
Qualifications
Articles, Publications and Seminars
Memberships & Affiliations
Professional Recognition
Recipient of National Award for Excellence in Urban Planning for her role in the drafting of the City Planning Scheme - Thuringowa (2004 – Planning Institute of Australia).
Land, Planning and Environment Law:
o Planning and Environment Law
o Property Law
o Compulsory Acquisition and Valuation
Since her appointment in 2017 as a Sessional Member in the Planning & Environment List of the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal, Picha can no longer accept retainers to appear in VCAT. Her appointment has no affect on her practise as a barrister elsewhere where she continues to practise predominately in Queensland and the other States.
She has a current multi-jurisdictional practice and extensive litigation and advisory experience which provide a unique capability to provide high level strategic advice on legislative reform and planning policy. Her ongoing litigation work informs and compliments her advisory and project management capabilities and provides clients with strategic and practical options particularly directed to desired identified outcomes.
She has extensive experience in all aspects of planning processes and advising clients involved in development from both sides of the fence. Her experience extends to advising on large scale tourism projects, green field residential developments, major shopping centre and warehouse developments and projects in environmentally sensitive locations.
Picha's extensive expertise as a barrister and advisor has been established having drawn upon the conduct of planning and environment litigation on behalf of many local governments and developers throughout Victoria, New South Wales and Queensland.
She has authored and conducted many training programs for government officers, councillors and the development industry on a variety of issues including manager responsibilities/due diligence, the Victorian, Queensland and New South Wales Planning Acts, the Commonwealth Environmental Protection and Conservation Biodiversity Act; and prosecution and enforcement officer training.
Picha has also been called on to present addresses at a variety of significant conferences and seminars throughout Australia, such as presentations at seminars on management responsibilities and state based and national planning issues.
In addition to her many legal presentations, Picha has written a variety of manuals on topics involving the Health Act, the Queensland Integrated Development Assessment System, drafting of statutory notices and standard development conditions.
She has served as the Treasurer of the Women’s Planning Network Victoria, been a State Vice President of the Queensland Environmental Law Association and delivers seminars to the Victorian Planning and Environmental Law Association on comparative planning jurisdictional issues.
Administrative Law:
Picha has extensive experience in matters involving Administrative Law and all aspects of Judicial and Merits Review.
Her main areas of practice in public law, comprises:
- review of administrative decisions (mainly judicial review proceedings in the courts, but sometimes also merits review in administrative tribunals);
- construction and application of particular statutory regimes; and
- constitutional law.
Freedom of Information Law
Picha is considered one of the country's best practitioners in this area. She has extensive legal and practical knowledge of the various State and Federal statutory regimes concerning FOI.
Her practice includes advice and appearances involving:
- Seeking Access under Freedom of Information Legislation
- Giving Access under Freedom of Information Legislation
- Exceptions to Access under Freedom of Information Legislation
- Amendment of Records under Freedom of Information Legislation
- Reviews and Appeals under Freedom of Information Legislation
Gambling Regulation and Control
Picha has practised in this specialist area for a number of years and has gained significant and extensive experience as Counsel assisting the Gaming Licensing Project of the Victorian Commission for Gambling and Liquor Regulation.
The Commission is the independent statutory authority that administers Victoria’s liquor and gambling laws.
Picha’s role as Counsel Assisting the project covered a period of almost 12 months advising the Commission and appearing at hearings.
Family Law:
Since commencing practice at the Bar Picha has appeared in a number of significant cases (in her own right and also being led by Queen's Counsel and Senior Counsel).
She has also appeared in the Family Court of Australia in corporate and property matters and the Federal Circuit Court in both its family and general jurisdictions but principally in the following areas:
• Financial Agreements
• Property Disputes
• Parenting Disputes
• Spousal Maintenance
• Crimes Family Violence
• Intervention Orders
• Defacto Property Disputes
Commercial Law:
In the general commercial/corporate law area her matters have involved interlocutory applications, trials and appeals in all aspects of commercial law and in Bankruptcy and Corporations Act matters. These have covered Corporate Governance and Insolvency Law issues in the Corporate Insolvency area which have provided significant case development in cases under Part 5.3A Corporations Act in respect of administrations and insolvencies. In one of these matters she was junior counsel when the matter went to the High Court of Australia.
Professional Achievements
Qualifications
- Bachelor of Laws, University of Sydney, 1993
- Master of Business Administration, Victoria University, Melbourne, 2017. Selection of Expert Witnesses by Australian Legal Practitioners: A Pilot Empirical Study.
- Admitted: Supreme Court of Queensland, March 1997
- Member, Building and Development Tribunal of Queensland 2009 - 2012
- Sessional Member, Planning & Environment List, Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal, since 2017
Articles, Publications and Seminars
- Operational Manual on the Environmental Licensing Regime under the Environmental Protection Act;
- Powers and Responsibilities of the Local Government Engineer (for the Institute of Public Work Engineers of Australia (Author and presenter of comprehensive operational manual in conjunction with a two day training program)
- Powers of Entry (author and presenter of comprehensive manual in conjunction with a one day training program)
- Drafting and Enforcement of Statutory Notices (Author and presenter of manual)
- Private Certification under the Integrated Planning Act (Queensland Environmental Law Association Conference, 2004)
- The role of the expert witness in Planning and Environment litigation (IPWEAQ State Conference, 2003)
- Drafting planning schemes under the Integrated Planning Act (Qld) (Planning Institute of Australia, National Conference, Adelaide, 2003)
Memberships & Affiliations
- Bar Association of Queensland
- Victorian Bar
- Tasmanian Bar
- New South Wales Bar Association
- Queensland Environmental Law Association (past Vice President)
- Law Council of Australia, Family Law Section, Member
- Australian Institute for Commercial Arbitration, Member
- Women’s Planning Network Victoria, (past Treasurer)
- Victorian Planning and Environmental Law Association, Member
- Planning Institute of Australia, Member
- Environmental Health Institute of Australia, Associate Member
Professional Recognition
Recipient of National Award for Excellence in Urban Planning for her role in the drafting of the City Planning Scheme - Thuringowa (2004 – Planning Institute of Australia).
