Victorian Bar elects new President and Council members

The immediate past President of the Victorian Bar, Jennifer Batrouney QC, welcomed the appointment of Dr Collins and the new Bar Council members. “The Victorian Bar has a strong history of making a vital contribution to the Victorian justice system and safeguarding the rule of law,” Ms Batrouney said. “It has been a privilege to lead the Bar and I am proud of our achievements and progress during the last 12 months. I am delighted to welcome our new President, Dr Matt Collins QC, and our new Council members.”

Incoming President Dr Collins said, “I would like to pay tribute to Jennifer Batrouney for her leadership, hard work and strong commitment to the members and ideals of the Bar, not only during the past year, but over many years of exemplary service.

“I am honoured to have been elected as President of the Victorian Bar—an independent college of specialist advocates which is proud of its heritage, but at the same time modern, accessible and committed to principles of equality and diversity. The Victorian Bar plays an irreplaceable role in our system of justice by furthering the rule of law in the service of the people of Victoria.”

Dr Collins is one of Australia’s leading media lawyers and has acted in many of the most important free speech cases of the past generation, as well as in many high profile commercial cases. He joined the Bar in 1999 and took silk in 2011.

A Senior Fellow at the Melbourne Law School, Dr Collins holds a PhD in law from Melbourne University. He is the author of Collins on Defamation (Oxford University Press, 2014), a leading text on the law of defamation in England and Wales, and all three editions of The Law of Defamation and the Internet (Oxford University Press, 2001, 2005, 2010), the standard international text on the application of principles of defamation law to online publications. Dr Collins is a door tenant at London’s One Brick Court chambers, a leading set of media and information law barristers.
His previous roles include Counsel Assisting the Royal Commission into the Building and Construction Industry, 2001-2; Senior Associate/Solicitor at Mallesons Stephen Jaques, 1994-9; and, Associate to Justice D M Ryan, Federal Court of Australia, 1992-3.

A full list of Bar Council members and office bearers is available https://www.vicbar.com.au/bar-council-members-and-office-bearers-20172018.