Adam graduated with a Bachelor of Laws from Southern Cross University in 2009. In 2013, Adam completed the Graduate Diploma in Legal Practice at the Law Society of South Australia, was admitted to the Supreme Court of South Australia as a barrister and solicitor and his name entered as such on the High Court Register of Practitioners.
Adam is also a registered pharmacist having graduated with a Bachelor of Pharmacy from the University of South Australia in 1998. In 2004, he graduated with a Master of Business Administration from Southern Cross University.
Adam has a deep knowledge of government legal practice in three large Commonwealth agencies, significant advocacy experience in merits review, and a strategic understanding of health, social security and disability programs.
Although Adam had a career spanning over two decades in government, he has a commercial focus and is well versed in risk management across program and project management, operations and logistics, and legal and reputational domains.
Current practice
Adam is admitted in South Australia as a barrister & solicitor and is practicing exclusively as counsel in his private practice.
In February 2022, Adam joined 3 Shell Chambers and established his practice as counsel in the areas of administrative law, family law, and workers compensation.
Adam also practices as a mediator in most types of disputes including commercial disputes, workplace disputes, estates, and family law and child support matters.
Adam joined the independent bar in October 2023, and commenced the Bar Readers’ Course with the South Australian Bar Association. He signed the Bar Roll in June 2024. Adam was mentored by Sean Richter and The Hon Steven Strickland KC.
Find out more about Adam’s practice areas here.
Before law
Before pursuing a career in law, Adam was a pharmacist with wide experience across the community, hospital, regulatory and military health logistics sectors. He commenced his pharmacy career in the Australian Regular Army in 1999 and completed his internship at the Repatriation General Hospital, Daw Park. He was posted to Townsville in 2000 and Sydney in 2002.
In October 2002, he transferred to the Army Reserve and commenced his career in the Australian Public Service as an Executive Level officer in what was the Australian Government Health Insurance Commission (HIC) (later Medicare Australia, and Department of Human Services).
He worked as a pharmaceutical adviser in audit and compliance of Medicare, Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme and other health programs, in the listing of highly specialised medicines on the PBS, and in a variety of health compliance project management and team leadership roles including peer education, desk and field audit, criminal investigations, legal knowledge management, and quality management.
Before practice as counsel
Adam commenced private legal practice in January 2015 at Wadlow Solicitors where he managed the family law needs of the firm’s commercial clients.
Soon after, Adam was seconded within what was the Australian Government Department of Human Services (DHS) (now Services Australia) as a Senior Government Lawyer working in the Adelaide Litigation team. Adam appeared as counsel in the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) in social security, child support, aged care and related matters. Adam also instructed external solicitors and counsel in the Federal Circuit Court (as it was then) and the Federal Court of Australia.
In November 2016, he transferred to a non-legal role in the Australian Government Department of Health where he managed the debt recovery operations for health provider compliance division. This included post-audit and post-prosecution recoveries, and proceeds of crime.
In November 2017, Adam commenced at the AAT as the District Registrar, Adelaide Registry. Adam completed mediation training and assessment for accreditation under the National Mediator Accreditation System and managed a dispute resolution case load in the General, Tax & Commercial, National Disability Support Scheme, Freedom of Information, Veterans’ and other divisions.
As the senior APS staff member, he led the registry and outposted staff in Adelaide, managed the operations of the Tribunal across South Australia, western New South Wales and the Northern Territory and was responsible for business continuity through the Coronavirus pandemic.
Adam was also on the AAT’s Audit and Risk Committee which provides independent advice to the Registrar on the appropriateness of the AAT’s performance and financial reporting and systems relating to risk and control. It also provides advice on the adequacy of the AAT’s financial statements production.
Adam was contracted as a Senior Lawyer to the National Disability Insurance Agency from March 2022 until October 2023.
Not law
Adam has more than 25 years service in the Australian Army and holds the rank of Colonel. He has deployed twice on overseas operations in Timor Leste and was the Commanding Officer of the 9th Combat Service Support Battalion which deployed on Operation Bushfire Assist in January 2020 providing logistics and health support across Kangaroo Island and the Adelaide Hills.
As a former Commanding Officer, he has experience in the ADF’s disciplinary and administrative law systems, and has completed the Advanced Inquiry Officer Course.
In 2023, Adam was the inaugural Deputy Commander of the 2nd Brigade located at Victoria Barracks, Sydney. This is the formation headquarters for all of Army’s deployable medical, dental, and allied health assets.
In 2024, Adam was posted as the Deputy Commander of the 9th Brigade located at Keswick Barracks, Adelaide.
Boards
In October 2025, Adam was elected to the inaugural board of Military Advocates SA, an incorporated not-for-profit organisation which provides Compensation Advocates and Wellbeing Advocates helping South Australian veterans and their families in times of injury, illness or crisis.
Adam has prior board related experience serving for 11 years as the Secretary of an incorporated not-for-profit sporting club. Through his leadership and vision, he developed strong internal governance and management systems, wrote a new club constitution and rules to meet the current legislative requirements, programmed and deployed a club management database and website, developed smart forms and transitioned club newsletters and member communications from hardcopy to online.
In his Army career, Adam has been heavily involved in various Army officers messes as a committee member, President of the Mess Committee, or as a Commanding or Supervising Officer.