Raising the bar
Doctor of Philosophy
Dr Ian Richard Lloyd Freckelton AO KC is one of Australia’s leading scholarly and practising lawyers. He has written and edited over 40 books and collections, 600 peer reviewed articles and over 250 book reviews. His work is innovative and wide in its scope, with a practical edge and cross-disciplinary, international focus.
His highly distinguished 30 year career is filled with accolades, having been cited by all major courts in Australia, as well as by a number of international courts. He is particularly well known for his outstanding contributions to the international development and evolution of colonial law, and his work in the technical and complex law of evidence. He is a senior silk at the Victorian Bar and a Judge of the Supreme Court of Nauru.
Dr Freckelton has appeared in numerous high-profile matters including; the Lindt Siege Commission of Inquiry, the regulatory processes involving Dr Patel, the Eastman Judicial Inquiry, the Aged Care Royal Commission, the Bourke Street Inquest and the Barwon Children’s Case.
He conducted the investigation into allegations of sexual impropriety against the Melbourne Lord Mayor, Robert Doyle. He is also one of the most appointed Tribunal members at the Commonwealth and State levels.
For 23 years he has also sat on the Mental Health Review Board / Mental Health Tribunal in Victoria, including a period as its Acting President. He has served as a member of the Social Security Appeals Tribunal, the Medical Practitioners Board of Victoria, the Psychologists Registration Board and the Disciplinary Appeals Board.
He conducted the Victorian Law Reform Commission review into the use of medicinal cannabis and was then appointed to the Australian Council on Medicinal Cannabis to continue the reform process.
Dr Freckelton was the 2019 Outstanding Alumni Award Winner for the AEL Group.
In 2021, Dr Freckelton was awarded an Officer of the Order of Australia (AO) for distinguished service to the law, and to the legal profession, across fields including health, medicine and technology.
Profile updated 26/04/2023