Our members

Felicity Hampel AM SC

Appointed April 2024.

Felicity is a former judge of the County Court, where she served with distinction from 2005 to 2023. She previously practised as a barrister, including nine years as senior counsel. Most of Felicity’s work, both as a judge and as counsel, was in the areas of criminal, human rights and administrative law.

Beyond her experience as a judge and barrister, Felicity’s past positions include: Commissioner of the Victorian Law Reform Commission, President of Liberty Victoria, Board Member of the Royal Women’s Hospital and Adjunct Professor at Monash University’s Faculty of Law. Felicity was also a founding member of Australian Women Lawyers and the Women Barristers Association, Vice-Chair of the Victorian Bar Readers Course Committee, and a member of the Victorian Bar Equality before the Law Committee. She is also a nationally and internationally renowned leader in the development and delivery of advocacy training programs for law students and practitioners.

Stuart Ward

Appointed June 2019.

Stuart Ward is the Deputy Chairperson having acted in the Chairperson’s role between 16 January 2024, following Michele Williams KC’s resignation, and appointment of the new Chairperson on 9 April 2024. He has been Deputy Chairperson of the Authority since 2019.

Stuart has extensive experience in criminal law, legal management, and statutory decision-making. Having worked as a prosecutor and manager at the Office of Public Prosecutions (OPP) for 10 years, he returned to the OPP in 2007 as its inaugural Legal Practice Manager with executive responsibility for its legal practice and victim services. He was appointed as acting Solicitor for Public Prosecutions for 2008-2009. 

Stuart served as the Chief Administrative Officer of the Adult Parole Board from 2014-2019, where he was instrumental in reforming and modernising the organisation and the parole system. He has held statutory decision-making appointments with Business Licensing Authority (Deputy Chairperson, 1999-2007), Motor Car Traders’ Claims Committee (Chairperson, 2001-2007), and as acting Director of Liquor Licensing (2006). 

Carmel Arthur OAM

Appointed February 2018.

Carmel has a diverse background and extensive experience in strategic planning, integrated service delivery, and systems thinking in both the public and private sector. She has vast experience in the criminal justice system which has included working with the Courts, Corrections Victoria and Victoria Police. Carmel has great personal insight and a unique comprehension of the operation of the criminal justice system. She is not only a victim of crime but has also worked with many victims of crime and brings a wide perspective and breadth of experience from across the victim support system.

She advocates for better treatment of victims and their families through the criminal justice systems, and is particularly conscious of the need to keep the community engaged and informed about the justice system. She is also committed to finding the balance between delivering a safer community and supporting the treatment and rehabilitation of offenders through the use of effective and evidence based means by ensuring offenders take responsibility for their own risk reduction, through building the necessary human and social capital required to live a meaningful life in the community. Carmel is a founding member of the Sentencing Advisory Council, is on the Board of the Penington Institute and held the role of community member on the Adult Parole Board for nine years before her term expired in 2017.

Carmel was recognized for her services to the law, having been conferred with an Order of Australia Medal in the 2021 Queen’s Birthday Honours List.

Carmel is the Chair of the Authority’s Strategy and Engagement Subcommittee.

Dr David Curnow

Appointed October 2020.

Dr Curnow is a forensic psychologist with over 20 years’ experience in the criminal justice system. Dr Curnow practiced as a psychologist in Victorian correctional facilities for 13 years, and practiced privately where he provided training and supervision to psychologists, and developed specialist training programs on violence treatment, white collar crime, and forensic interviewing.  He is also a Clinical associate with Swinburne University.

In 2014, Dr Curnow joined the Adult Parole Board as a full-time member where he sat regularly on the Detention and Supervision Order Division until its functions were absorbed by the Post Sentence Authority. Whilst a member of the Adult Parole Board, Dr Curnow built a detailed understanding of the post sentence scheme and he contributed to the Harper Review, which made the recommendations that led to the establishment of the Post Sentence Authority.

Katherine Byrne

Appointed March 2021 (sessional member) and July 2024 Full Time Member.

Kate began her diverse career in court administration before being admitted to practice as a Barrister and Solicitor of the Supreme Court of Victoria in 2001. Kate initially practised family law and child protection with Victoria Legal Aid and then moved into a Legal Officer role within Child Protection in the then Department of Human Services.

In 2011, Kate joined the Department of Justice and Community Safety as the General Manager of Community Services in the Loddon Mallee region, where she was responsible for leading crime prevention, victim services, consumer affairs, and sheriff operations. Thereafter, Kate led a team of clinicians delivering offending behaviour programs to clients in prisons and the community.

In 2017, Kate joined the Department of Justice NSW as the Director of Community Corrections (Sydney South West), where she managed a large number of community corrections staff and oversaw the supervision of offenders subject to Extended Supervision Orders accommodated in residential facilities.

As Chief Operating Officer for Access Australia Group in Bendigo in 2019, Kate led a team of staff and volunteers working to enhance training and employment opportunities for people with disability before moving into a Chief Operating Officer role at ARC Justice in Loddon Mallee in 2022, leading teams of people achieving positive social change across a wide regional area.

Meghan Butterfield

Appointed March 2021.

Meghan was admitted to practice as a Barrister and Solicitor of the Supreme Court of Victoria in 1997.  Since becoming a lawyer, Meghan’s primary area of practice has been in acting for survivors of sexual assault. She has also practised in several other areas, including criminal law, general personal injuries and asbestos litigation.

In 2000, she joined the Springvale-Monash Legal Service (SMLS) where she managed the SMLS/ South Eastern Centre Against Sexual Assault (SECASA) Joint Legal Service – a specialist sexual assault clinic. Meghan was also an adjunct lecturer at Monash University Law Faculty, where she trained and supervised law students and junior lawyers in clinical practice. With a strong commitment to the education of law students and representing victims, Meghan authored the chapter on victims’ rights in the ‘Lawyers Practice Manual’ for 14 years.

In 2018, Meghan was appointed as a legal member on the Victorian Mental Health Tribunal where she has gained significant experience as a member of the Tribunal that is required to navigate difficult questions under a complex legal framework. 

Meghan has recently undertaken her Master of Laws, focusing on human rights and health law. 

Dr Karen Gelb

Appointed October 2023.

Dr Gelb is a Consultant Criminologist who has spent more than 20 years researching Australian criminal justice systems. She has published extensively on a range of issues, including sex offending, family violence, specialist courts, public opinion on sentencing, bail and remand, and youth justice.

Dr Gelb has written on ‘what works’ to prevent reoffending and the effectiveness of different sentencing options. This includes contributions to evaluations in Victoria, Queensland and the ACT of family violence courts, drug and alcohol courts, and reintegration programs following release from prison.

Prior to starting her consulting business, Dr Gelb spent eight years with the Sentencing Advisory Council leading the organisation’s public opinion research, and five years with the National Centre for Crime and Justice Statistics.

In addition to consulting, Dr Gelb lectures at the Melbourne University Department of Criminology. She is also a Board Director for Court Network, and the Manager of Research and Workforce Development at Penington Institute, where she writes about drug policy and harm reduction. 

Judge Helen Syme

Appointed October 2024.

Helen is a sessional member and can undertake the Deputy Chairperson role.

Helen has over 35 years’ experience as a judicial officer in three states, most recently as a Reserve Judge of the County Court of Victoria, where she served from 2022 to 2024. Prior to that she was a Judge of the District Court of New South Wales (NSW) between 2009 and 2021, Deputy Chief Magistrate NSW , Magistrate Family Court of Western Australia (WA) and Magistrate Children’s Court of WA. 

She studied Law in WA and obtained a B.Juris and LLB , after which she practiced in private practice as a barrister and solicitor. 

Other roles included Chair of the NSW Institute of Psychiatry   between 2004 and 2014 and member of the NSW Judicial Commission between 2000 and 2009 . Over time she has involved herself  in  an array of law reform  processes  and  initiatives. 

Helen has been a Divisional Chairperson of the Adult Parole board since 2023 and was recently appointed as a member of the Mental Health Tribunal.

Anthony Vitale 

Appointed December 2024. 

Anthony has been a Senior Clinical Governance Advisor with Beyond Blue since 2022. He was a Lecturer and Teaching Associate at Monash University from 2019 to 2024. Between 2017 and 2022, Anthony managed the Community Integration Support Program, Australia’s flagship Countering Violent Extremism initiative, which addressed the needs of individuals involved in or at risk of committing terrorism-related offences.  He was Senior Consultant, Family Violence Reform at the Magistrates Court of Victoria between 2017 and 2018 and Manager, Community Integration Support Program between 2013 and 2017 at Victoria Police, and Manager, Detention and Supervision Order Division at the Adult Parole Board of Victoria between 2009 and 2012. 

From 2002 to 2008, Mr Vitale held several positions at Corrections Victoria, including coordinator and counsellor.

He is a PhD candidate in Criminology and holds a Bachelor of Arts from Monash University and a post-graduate diploma from Deakin University.

Elicia Savvas

Appointed December 2024.

Elicia has been an Associate Director of Child Protection at Victoria Legal Aid (VLA) since 2019 and has 19 years of experience as a lawyer. She has held several senior leadership roles at VLA since 2011, including as Associate Director, Grants and Quality Assurance from 2022 to 2023, Program Manager, Child Protection from 2018 to 2019, Program Manager, Family Violence from 2017 to 2018. 

Before the VLA, Elicia was a solicitor at the Department of Human Services Court Advocacy Unit from 2007 to 2008 and a senior policy lawyer at the Department of Human Services. She received a Churchill Fellowship in 2023 to investigate child-centred approaches to child protection legal services. 

She has been a sessional member of the Worker and Carer Exclusion Scheme Panel (formerly the Suitability Panel) since 2022. 

Elicia is an accredited specialist in Children’s Law and she holds a Bachelor of Laws and Legal Practice and a Bachelor of Arts from Flinders University.