Meet our Team

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At Sydney Drug Lawyers, we pride ourselves on being Sydney’s best drug defence team.

Our specialist drug defence lawyers are passionate about the law and possess the experience and expertise to defend all types of drug charges – and in many cases get charges dropped before they even reach court.

Our lawyers have exceptional courtroom skills and an excellent rapport with members of the legal profession, enabling us to consistently get the best results for our clients.

We fight for justice in cases that other lawyers have deemed ‘unwinnable,’ often helping our clients to avoid a criminal record.

Our team currently comprises seven expert drug lawyers, each of whom possesses a wealth of experience in order to ensure that our valued clients get the level of service that they deserve.

So whether you’ve been charged with small possession or commercial drug importation, look no further.

Give us a call on 02 9264 5778 now and speak to us about a FREE first consultation to discuss your matter.

Ugur Nedim

Mr Ugur Nedim is the Principal of Sydney Criminal Lawyers®.

He has a distinguished career as an exceptional criminal defence lawyer and has been recognised by the Law Society of NSW as an Accredited Criminal Law Specialist for since 2005.

Mr Nedim commenced his criminal defence career in 1992 as a law clerk with specialist criminal law firm Brezniak Neil-Smith and Co, under the mentorship of legendary criminal defence lawyer Angus Neil-Smith (now retired).

He excelled academically – completing a combined Bachelor of Laws / Bachelor of Arts degree, then a Graduate Diploma in Legal Practice and finally a Master of Laws degree at Sydney University achieving a rare ‘high distinction’ grade average.

He commenced practising as a courtroom criminal defence lawyer in late 1998; independently representing clients in a range of criminal & traffic cases.

He regularly conducted difficult & complex defended hearings, trials and appeals, achieving an outstanding success rate.

He started ‘Nedim Lawyers – Criminal Defence Specialists’ in 2001, which later became ‘Sydney Criminal Lawyers®’.

Mr Nedim has represented clients in some of Australia’s highest profile and most difficult criminal cases, including:

  • Australia’s largest ever heroin importation trial, which involved the importation of over 600 kg of heroin; all 3 clients found ‘not guilty’.
  • Over two dozen murder & manslaughter trials, including many arising from the ‘gangland wars’ in Western Sydney;
  • Over 100 serious criminal trials including dozens of sexual assault trials, commercial drug trials, complex fraud trials, grievous bodily harm, robbery, detain for advantage, intent to murder, dangerous driving occasioning death, proceeds of crime and various other trial matters;
  • Representing companies and individuals for allegations of corporate crime and investigations, anti money laundering, bribery and other forms of corruption, fraud and ‘white collar’ crime,
  • Protecting client interests in all types of courts and tribunals, including ICAC, Crime Commission & Coroner’s Court;
  • Successful Appeals at every level – from the Local Court, to hundreds in the District & Supreme Courts (including NSWCCA) all the way up to the High Court of Australia.

Mr Nedim is a dedicated, knowledgeable and persuasive criminal lawyer who is respected by magistrates, judges and prosecutors.

He fights hard to have cases ‘dropped’ and is consistently able to defend and win serious criminal cases that other criminal lawyers are unable to win (see Recent Cases).

Mr Nedim has conducted 4000+ local court cases over his career, with a particular emphasis on:

  • drink driving and major traffic offences,
  • drug possession & supply,
  • assaults and AVOs,
  • fraud & dishonesty offences, and
  • defended hearings, committal hearings, guilty pleas, bail applications and mental health cases.

However, he now focuses on serious and complex crime, with a special emphasis on corporate crime and investigations, large-scale fraud, commercial drug importation and supply, and murder/manslaughter cases.

Mr Nedim is a true specialist because he has always practised as a criminal defence lawyer – not a prosecutor, general lawyer or commercial lawyer, which have little relevance to high quality criminal defence work. Over and above this, he has independently carried his cases from start to finish since the start of his legal career – undertaking advocacy (courtroom) work where other lawyers may need the assistance of others.

Mr Nedim has developed specialised procedures, methods and techniques to achieve desirable outcomes for his corporate and individual clients.

He is respected for his ability to grasp large volumes of complex material, identify the relevant issues and formulate winning strategies, and his high-quality work is consistently praised by magistrates, judges and clients alike.

With Mr Nedim, clients can rest assured of receiving the best defence whatever their particular criminal or traffic case may be.

Vinny Vijay

Vinny Vijay is a Senior Associate with several years of experience practising exclusively in criminal defence.

He is a highly sought-after and respected defence lawyer who is vastly experienced in courtroom advocacy at all levels of the criminal justice system.

Throughout his career, Vinny has regularly appeared independently in a broad range of criminal cases, including:

  • Complex Local Court defended hearings,
  • Bail applications in the Local, District and Supreme Courts,
  • Sentencing proceedings in the Local and District Courts,
  • Mental health applications such as section 14 applications (previously known as ‘section 32 applications’), fitness hearings and the defence of mental impairment, and
  • All manner of appeals, from licence appeals in the Local Court, to firearms reviews in the NCAT, to severity and conviction appeals in the District Court and New South Wales Court of Criminal Appeal.

Vinny is also vastly experienced in preparing and instructing counsel in jury trials, from commercial drug cases, to aggravated sexual assaults, manslaughter and murder.

He has substantial experience in successfully representing clients in pre-trial applications such as forensic procedure applications and committal hearings, resulting in cases being thrown out of court, and has a special interest in the abuse of powers by police officers including unlawful arrests and searches.

Vinny brings a forensically minded approach to criminal law, ensuring his clients benefit from meticulous preparation and effective execution of case strategy, as a product of Vinny’s extensive knowledge of legal and procedural requirements that prosecutors must satisfy to proceed with cases.

Putting this knowledge to practise frequently enables Vinny to have charges withdrawn or dismissed in court.

He is a passionate and empathetic defence lawyer who is tenacious in ensuring his clients have the greatest prospects of success, doggedly pursuing lines of inquiry – from potential defence witnesses and exculpatory evidence, to forensic investigation by experts – in order to achieve positive outcomes.

Vinny is an integral part of Sydney’s best criminal defence team.

Mariecar Capili

Mariecar Capili is a criminal defence lawyer with substantial experience representing clients in criminal and traffic cases.She regularly appears in courts throughout New South Wales in a wide range of criminal and traffic cases including drink and drug driving, drug possession, apprehended violence orders, assaults, larceny, fraud and driver licence appeals.

She is also vastly experienced instructing barristers in serious and complex District and Supreme Court trials.

Mariecar’s clients benefit from her knowledge and understanding of the criminal justice system, both within and outside the courtroom, and her dedication in ensuring that her clients achieve the best possible outcome, whatever their criminal or traffic cases may be.

Mariecar is an invaluable member of Sydney’s best criminal defence team.

Rachel Martin

Rachel Martin is a Senior Associate Criminal Lawyer who joined our profession-leading criminal defence team with a firmly established reputation as a formidable legal practitioner in both public and private criminal defence law firms.

Rachel gained her initial experience as a Tipstaff to a New South Wales Supreme Court Justice (Judge), a Research Assistant to a prominent Sydney Criminal Defence Barrister and a Law Clerk at Newcastle Aboriginal Legal Service.

She excelled academically whilst gaining valuable insights in these positions, achieving First Class Honours in Law and receiving awards for academic excellence.

Rachel has years of experience successfully representing clients in a wide-range of criminal and traffic law cases, from bail applications, sentencing hearings, section 14 mental health applications, committal hearings and defended hearings in the Local and Children’s Courts to appeals and instructing in complex jury trials in the District Court of New South Wales.

Her varied experience in the criminal justice system has informed her understanding of policy and practice from all perspectives, giving her a significant advantage when it comes to formulating and executing pathways to success for her valued clients.

Rachel is a passionate defender of clients from diverse social, cultural and economic backgrounds, consistently achieving outstanding outcomes through thorough, high-quality legal work and dogged persistence.

Her respectful and empathetic manner are endearing to her clients, while her experience, expertise and professionalism are respected by those who work within the criminal justice system.

Rachel is an integral member of Sydney’s best criminal defence team.

Robert Hanson
Robert Hanson is a highly-respected Senior Associate Criminal Lawyer with 15 years of experience focusing on criminal defence.He has built and refined his ability to formulate and implement effective defence strategies during his years working with a number of criminal defence law firms, and well as his own legal practice.

Robert is a people’s advocate. He is imbued with a deep passion for social justice and empathy, and is tenacious when it comes to fighting for his valued clients.

He has successfully represented clients at all levels of the criminal justice system, and in all manner of criminal and traffic law cases, from less-serious cases such as drink driving, drug possession and small supply, less-serious assaults and AVOs all the way up to commercial drug cases, sexual assaults, assaults involving grievous bodily harm, complex fraud, money laundering and proceeds of crime, and homicide cases.

Robert leaves no stone unturned when it comes to the preparation of complex cases, dissecting the available material, identifying inconsistencies, deficiencies as well as legal defences that may be available, and accessing a network of forensic and medical experts to provide clients with the highest quality legal representation.

He has a long and proven track record of consistently having charges withdrawn at an early stage in the proceedings or dismissed in court in the event the prosecution proceeds to hearing or trial, as well as downgrading charges to less-serious ones when the evidence is overwhelming, and achieving lenient results such as ‘non conviction orders’ when clients wish to plead guilty.

Robert is an integral member of Sydney’s best criminal defence team.

Patrick O’Sullivan

Patrick O’Sullivan is an experienced criminal defence lawyer who moved up to our profession-leading team after working for two other boutique specialist criminal defence firms in the Sydney CBD, where he was exposed to a large number of serious and complex criminal cases over a considerable period of time.

Patrick has been responsible for wide range of cases over his career, from murder, robbery in company, kidnapping, sexual assault and commercial drug importation, down to less-serious cases such as drug possession, assaults and AVOs, drink and drug driving, and driving whilst disqualified.

He is an exceptional courtroom lawyer, having successfully represented clients in many local court defended hearings, sentencing hearings in the local and district court, severity and conviction appeals in the district court, and bail applications in the local, district and supreme courts.

He is also vastly experienced in preparing and instructing barristers in complex District and Supreme Court jury and judge-alone trials.

Patrick is an affable lawyer who has his clients’ interests at heart at all times. His commitment and dedication are reflected in his outstanding track record of results, as well as the trust and confidence he instils in those he assists.

He is passionate about ensuring that his clients are kept thoroughly informed throughout the court process, and applies his impressive grasp of criminal law and procedure to developing and implementing defence strategies that achieve exceptional results.

Patrick is an integral part of Sydney’s best criminal defence team.

Tandy Machisa

Thandiwe (Tandy) Machisa is a specialist criminal and traffic defence lawyer with a strong sense of social justice and a passion for fighting on behalf of those who find themselves faced with allegations of serious crimes – claims which can put individuals in an unfair position of having to answer to the state and its virtually unlimited resources.

Tandy is a people-oriented lawyer with enormous empathy and compassion towards her valued clients. She holds degrees in both arts (majoring in psychology) psychology and law, and has spent considerable time volunteering her services to community legal centres in order to ensure just outcomes are achieved for the vulnerable and disempowered.

She was employed with another specialist criminal defence firm in Sydney before her skills, commitment and dedication made clear she would be a valuable asset our law firm.

Tandy works tirelessly to ensure her clients achieve optimal outcomes in a broad range of criminal and traffic law cases. She is vastly experienced in preparing and instructing senior barristers in serious and complex criminal law cases including aggravated sexual assault, commercial drug supply and importation, manslaughter and murder trials – where she has achieved successful outcomes.

Tandy is also experienced in representing clients for less-serious cases that are heard in the Local Court – such as drug possession, common assault, AVOs, sexual touching, sexual act, speeding, drink and drug driving, driving whilst disqualified, reckless driving and driver licence appeals – as well as bail applications and section 14 mental health applications (previously known as ‘section 32 applications’).

She puts herself in the position of her clients, and her tenacity ensures they know they are being represented by a lawyer who will do all it takes to ensure they achieve justice.

Tandy is an integral member of Sydney’s best criminal defence team.

Yusuf Assaad
Mr Yusuf Assaad is a dedicated specialist criminal defence lawyer who is committed to achieving optimal outcomes for his clients.Yusuf commenced his criminal law career as a law clerk with two criminal defence law firms before being admitted as a lawyer and gaining the attention of our principal for his passion for criminal justice and persuasive representation of clients.

He is a talented defence lawyer who has the ability to carefully dissect prosecution evidence, identifying weaknesses including material inconsistencies and deficiencies in proof, as well as statutory and general legal defences, and to formulate and implement defence strategies that achieve positive outcomes – from the withdrawal of charges at early stages in the legal proceedings to dismissals in court.

Yusuf leaves no stone unturned when it comes to the preparation of criminal and traffic law cases and has proven himself to be an effective courtroom advocate, with the ability to persuade magistrate and judges to reach decisions which his clients seek; whether this be a lenient sentencing outcome such as a ‘non conviction order’ or a not guilty verdict.

He is an empathetic lawyer who is committed to ensuring clients from all social, cultural, ethnic and economic backgrounds are treated with understanding and respect, and who hold social justice and the protection of his clients’ interests at the very fore at all times.

Yusuf is an integral member of Sydney’s best criminal defence team.

David Harradine
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