James has joined the private bar after 15 years as a solicitor practising almost exclusively in criminal and traffic defence work. He has worked in various private law firms throughout the course of his career before ultimately starting his own successful law firm, Wallace O’Hagan Lawyers, from 2015 until he left in 2022 to commence at the bar.
He commenced work at a generalist law firm in Townsville in 2007, completing his clerkship there before being admitted to the Supreme Court of Queensland that same year. He was exposed to various areas of law during this time before discovering a passion for advocacy and criminal defence work.
He moved to Brisbane in 2008 and worked as a solicitor and then associate in a busy, boutique, criminal defence firm. He ran hundreds of matters from simple drink drive matters all the way through to complex murder cases. The firm was a preferred supplier of Legal Aid Queensland and James developed a real empathy and understanding for defendants of vastly different backgrounds and experiences.
James worked at a further firm as senior associate for 18 months where he successfully ran many quasi-criminal matters including Blue Card matters, university disciplinary processes, professional disciplinary matters, and other related work. He honed his experience in this areas and became very experienced at dealing with many types of investigative bodies.
Finally, he commenced his own law firm in 2015 which was also a preferred supplier for Legal Aid Queensland. He developed a large and loyal client base and was involved in running many matters to trial and sentence. James believed in a proactive role for a solicitor and was heavily involved with all negotiations and preparation of matters for trial.
After finishing the Bar Practice Course in 2022, he has finally fulfilled a life-long dream to become a barrister and is thoroughly enjoying the advocacy and opportunity to assist clients in Courts from QCAT to the Court of Appeal. He brings a wealth of experience with him to the bar and has already commenced a busy practice.