Judge Douglas Trapnell: A force to be reckoned with
50 Years / 50 Voices: Learning law and changing lives is a commemorative volume marking the 50th anniversary of the ongoing Monash Law Clinical Program, a pioneering initiative in clinical legal education undertaken by the Faculty of Law at Monash University. 50 alumni of the Monash Law Clinical Program shared their story with 50 current students of the same program. This is an excerpt from the book.
From the bench of the County Court of Victoria, Judge Douglas Trapnell has presided over hundreds of cases, from criminal trials to conviction appeals.
Throughout his career, Judge Trapnell has remained deeply committed to ensuring the law is applied justly and correctly, earning his reputation as a respected leader in the legal community.
Judge Trapnell says his time at Monash University helped shape who he is as a person today, and that his experience with the Monash Law Professional Practice unit was unforgettable. He refers to Monash as the best law school in Australia at the time of his tertiary education, and says much praise can be attributed to the first Dean of Monash Law Sir David Derham’s revolutionary vision for legal education.
Judge Trapnell recalls that the Springvale Legal Service site was simply a house that had been converted into the clinic, with a waiting room that was once a kitchen, perhaps, and bedrooms that had been converted into offices for client meetings. ‘You just didn’t know when you walked in who was going to be waiting for you in the waiting room,’ he says.
Judge Trapnell says he always felt destined for law and had already decided to go to the Bar by his penultimate year at Monash. His legal education provided particularly fond memories of the law library, in which he read anything he could get his hands on, from the Arizona Law Review to some of the earliest statutes in the country. He recalls the law library as the best one in Australia. ‘We had every journal you could possibly think of … it was just an amazing place.’
Read more about 50 years of Monash Law Clinics and buy 50 Years / 50 Voices here
Douglas Trapnell as a young solicitor with HSW Lawson Hughes & Co., 1983.
He began his Articles at a small city law firm in 1981, dealing with commercial law, real estate, and wills and probate law, before spending another year as a solicitor for that same firm. Judge Trapnell then had the opportunity to become an associate to Justice George Hampel at the Supreme Court of Victoria, under whose supervision he developed his love for criminal law.
Judge Trapnell was called to the Bar in 1986, reading with Michael Rozenes, who subsequently became the Chief Judge of the County Court of Victoria. ‘I had the best apprenticeship you could possibly have,’ he says.
In 1994, Judge Trapnell began several years as the Director of Research of the Law Reform Committee of the Victorian Parliament. Returning to active practice in 1999 as a prosecutor, he was appointed Crown Prosecutor in 2003 and took silk in 2008, becoming Senior Crown Prosecutor in 2010.
Judge Trapnell recalls the training the clinic gave him in taking instructions, dealing with people who were facing difficult circumstances and developing his sense of independence. The unpredictability of clients’ problems meant he had no choice but to adapt, extract instructions from copious information, do the research and figure out what to do.
‘In terms of experience, it was just amazing,’ Judge Trapnell says.
My last question was just as much for me as it was for the readers: ‘Your Honour, do you have any advice for me and my fellow students, bumbling through the last few years of our law degrees?’
‘Enjoy the ride. Enjoy the journey,’ he told me. And perhaps most importantly: ‘Don’t get too stressed.’
Read more about 50 years of Monash Law Clinics and buy 50 Years / 50 Voices here
Get involved with Monash Law Clinics
Monash Law Clinics combine legal education with real-world impact, supporting access to justice while equipping students with practical, ethical and professional skills.
If you are a student interested in undertaking a clinical unit as part of your studies, explore the available clinical placements and elective options.
Whether you’re an alum, practitioner or organisation keen to support the clinics through hosting placements, partnerships, volunteering or funding, there’s a way to be involved. To learn more, contact Emily Collard, Industry & Alumni Engagement Manager, at emily.collard@monash.edu.