The Legal Psychology Group was founded by Dr Peter Ashkar in 2016. Dr Ashkar is one of Australia’s leading forensic neuropsychologists. He holds Masters Degrees in Forensic Psychology (from the University of New South Wales) and Clinical Neuropsychology (from Macquarie University), and a PhD in Forensic Psychology (from the University of Sydney). He is one of only a few psychologists in the country to hold endorsement as a Forensic Psychologist and as a Clinical Neuropsychologist with the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA). He is also endorsed as a Supervising Psychologist (AHPRA). He is a Member of the Australian Psychological Society (MAPS), a Fellow of the APS College of Forensic Psychologists, and a Fellow of the APS College of Clinical Neuropsychologists.

Dr Ashkar began his career with Corrective Services NSW in 2002 and he moved into private forensic practice while completing his PhD studies in the years that followed. He has over 20 years of experience assessing people who have been charged with or convicted of criminal offences, writing reports for lawyers and the courts, and providing expert evidence (including at Supreme Court level). He is one of Australia’s leading experts in the assessment of psychological and neuropsychological injury with 20 years of experience conducting medicolegal assessments for WorkCover, the Motor Accident Authority NSW, the Transport Accident Commission VIC, insurance providers and other stakeholders in matters of workplace injury and compensation more generally, and he is an approved assessor with the State Insurance Regulatory Authority (NSW).

Dr Ashkar’s PhD research is published in peer reviewed international journals and he is the recipient of numerous academic prizes and awards. He received the APS College of Forensic Psychologists Maconochie Prize for his PhD research in 2011 and the Macquarie University Vice Chancellor's Commendation for Academic Excellence for his studies in Clinical Neuropsychology in 2013. He has taught psychology at university level, reviewed manuscripts for international forensic psychology journals, and he appears regularly on television and other media networks to provide expert psychological opinion.