Chris is a Partner of the Australian and New Zealand Practice of Fragomen and has responsibility for the Melbourne and New Zealand offices, in addition to leading the firm’s Advisory, Compliance and Government Relations Group and the Professional Practices Group. He is also heavily involved in the management and development of operations across all Australian offices.
Chris is currently the Chair of the Migration Law Committee of the Law Institute of Victoria in addition to being an Accredited Immigration Law Specialist.
As an experienced commercial and administrative law litigator and having practiced immigration law since 1995, Chris has extensive experience in providing immigration legal advice.
He has advised many Australian, multinational and global corporations across a variety of industry sectors and regularly advises individuals, as well as local and multinational corporations seeking to establish and/or operate within Australia.
Chris regularly appears before the Migration Review Tribunal, the Administrative Appeal Tribunal and the Federal and High Courts of Australia on behalf of his clients. He is also a regular presenter of Continuing Professional Development (CPD) sessions for migration advisers.
Chris undertakes volunteer work for Justice Connect. Justice Connect is an independent, not-for-profit organisation with offices in Melbourne and Sydney that is committed to delivering access to justice by providing pro bono legal services to people experiencing disadvantage and the community organisations that support them. It does so by matching organisations, and individuals who are ineligible for legal aid and cannot afford a lawyer, to lawyers and barristers willing to act on a pro bono basis.
Chris speaks English and Greek.
Education
La Trobe University | LL.B. (Hons.), 1999
Awards
Listed in Best Lawyers in Australia, Immigration Law, 2018 to 2019
Professional Accomplishments / Memberships
Immigration Credentials: Registered Migration Agent (MARN 9501084), Accredited Specialist - Immigration Law, Law Institute of Victoria
Court Admissions: Barrister and Solicitor, Supreme Court of Victoria, Barrister and Solicitor, High Court of Australia
Member, Migration Institute of Australia
Member, Law Institute of Victoria
Member, Law Council of Australia
Member, Immigration Lawyers Association of Australasia Focus Group (ILAA)
Committee Member, Migration Law Committee of the Administrative Law and Human Rights section of the Law Institute of Victoria
Committee Member, Australian Human Resources Institute, Special Area Committee on International Human Resources Management
Governor, American Chamber of Commerce in Victoria
Steering Committee Member, Forum of Expatriate Management (FEM) in Melbourne
Committee Member, Executive Committee of the Administrative Law and Human Rights sections of the Law Institute of Victoria
Chair, Migration Law Committee of the Administrative Law and Human Rights section of the Law Institute of Victoria
Assisted corporations to manage compliance with business sponsorship obligations and Labor Agreements
Briefed human resources managers and senior managers on immigration related issues, including compliance obligations
Advised corporations and individuals on complex technical issues regarding immigration visa eligibility, policies and related planning
Assisted individuals in relation to the full range of Australian visas, including skills migration, family migration, distinguished talent, and business skills visas as well as citizenship matters
Represented clients before the Migration Review Tribunal, the Administrative Appeal Tribunal, and the Federal and High Courts of Australia
Acted in a number of Federal Court cases, including two important cases involving appeals regarding decisions relating to applicants with a disability or who are permanently incapacitated
Publications and Lectures
Co- Author, "Citizenship, Former Residents and Resident Return Visas." Lexis Nexis Practical Guidance Immigration Law Module, 2014. Web