Trina Malone

Since coming to the bar, Trina has been briefed in a diverse range of matters, including:

• Acting on behalf of the lead applicant in a major class action alleging breaches by the Commonwealth of the Racial Discrimination Act 1975 (Cth) (Bonson v Commonwealth, Federal Court of Australia, VID1309/2025) (led by Jonathan Kirkwood SC and Madeleine Salinger).
• Acting on behalf of an individual named by the Independent Broad-based Anti-Corruption Commission in a Special Report (led by Ian Freckleton AO KC and Tim Farhall).
• Acting on behalf of the Attorney-General for the State of Victoria in two appeals to the Supreme Court of Victoria from the Magistrates’ Court raising the application of the functus officio doctrine in proceedings concerning the interstate transfer of prisoners (unled).
• Acting for the Victorian Chief Commissioner of Police as Respondent in a Federal Court proceeding in which a summary judgment application was successful (Kant v Chief Commissioner, Victoria Police [2026] FCA 430) (unled).
• Acting pro bono for an individual in judicial review proceedings in the Federal Court challenging a decision of the Administrative Review Tribunal under child support legislation (BEG v Child Support Registrar, VID136/2026) (unled).
• Providing advice to Government and private individuals on questions of constitutional and administrative law (including advice with Peter Hanks KC, Andrew Cameron SC and Anna Lord and unled).

Before coming to the Bar, Trina was a senior lawyer within government. Trina worked in the public law and planning branch at the Victoria Government Solicitor’s Office, where she conducted litigation in State and Federal Courts and advised government on a wide range of complex legal issues spanning constitutional, administrative, human rights and employment law and statutory interpretation. She was previously a senior lawyer at the Commonwealth Attorney-General’s Department; a lawyer at Maurice Blackburn; and a Senior Associate to the Honourable Justice McMillan at the Supreme Court of Victoria.

Trina holds a PhD in public law from the University of Cambridge, where she studied as a Cambridge (Australia) Trust and J C Hall Scholar, and a Master of Laws (First Class) from the University of Cambridge, and a Bachelor of Arts and Law (First Class) from the University of Melbourne. She was ranked first for the LLB subjects Employment Law, Evidence and Proof and Advanced Legal Research, and the LLM subject Legal and Political Philosophy. She has been a Research Fellow and lecturer in constitutional law for the JD program at Melbourne Law School and has taught human rights on the LLM program at the University of Cambridge.

Trina is reading with Anna Lord, and her senior mentor is Kathleen Foley SC.

Liability limited by a scheme approved under Professional Standards Legislation