Inside Royal Commissions: History, Power and Consequence

Royal commissions are on the increase and never far from the news. Post the Bondi terrorist attack one or course was established and its operation and findings will be of great national interest. In this episode the Wigs draw on numerous examples and look at the history, purpose and effect of the institution of the Royal commission.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode the Wigs dig into some of the legal and factual issues surrounding the extraordinary US military operation that captured sitting Venezuelan President Maduro in the early hours of 3 January 2026 and transferred him to New York to face an indictment alleging drug trafficking. Was the operation legal? What are the charges and what are the prospects of a successful defence? The episode provides a brief outline of these issues as the world awaits what will be a fascinating and complex criminal prosecution.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode, Stephen and Felicity are joined by the Hon. Steven Warmsley, former District Court judge, Senior Counsel, and author. The trio explores the arc of Warmsley's legal career, from solicitor to silk to judge, and unpacks the practicalities and philosophies of fearless advocacy.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode, two Members of the Legislative council, our own Stephen Lawrence and the Honourable Jeremy Buckingham MLC, Legalise Cannabis Party, sit down for a long chat. Felicity is present for the beginning of the chat, but had to depart, leaving the two MLC's to do what MLC's do best, talk a lot. The conversation begins with some law reform legislation that Jeremy is advocating for, but then moves on to a discussion of Jeremy's fascinating life and political story, including the brutal political battle that led him to leave the Greens as a first-term MP. It concludes with a discussion of the work Jeremy is doing to expose what he believes is the truth about serial killer Ivan Milat.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode, the Wigs discuss the decision in Mokbel v The King [2024] VSC 725, in which questions relating to an appeal by Antonious Mokbel arising out of the Gobbo saga in Victoria were determined by Justice Fullerton.  Shortly after the Wigs recorded this episode, the Victorian Court of Appeal granted Mokbel bail pending determination of his appeal, citing the findings made in the reference favourable to Mokbel and finding that there were exceptional circumstances justifying the grant of bail. Not long after he was granted bail, the Victorian DPP announced they were appealing the decision discussed in this episode.  The long saga continues…See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode the Wigs discuss a trio of recent high court decisions that deal with a pretty new question, when can a civil claim for sexual abuse said to have occured many decades ago be fairly tried, even when the alleged assailant has died and much related evidence lost. This question has emerged following the abolition by state parliaments of statutes of limitation, that previously prevented such "historical" claims from being advanced. The discussion touches on a number of fundamental legal questions including what is a fair trial, what is abuse of process and how and when can the parliament legislate to effectively alter these principles. The cases discussed are Willmot v The State of Queensland [2024] HCA 42, RC v The Salvation Army (Western Australia) Property Trust [2024] HCA 43 and GLJ v The Trustees of the Roman Catholic Church for the Diocese of Lismore[2023] HCA 32. Now,See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode - Wigs Felicity and Emmanuel speak with journalist Paul Farrell about proactive policing particularly stop and search practices within the NSW Police Force.  Paul is an investigative reporter who has worked at the ABC, the Guardian and Buzzfeed News, breaking major national and international stories. He led the Guardian's Nauru files reporting team, which published thousands of pages of leaked documents from Australia's offshore detention regime and won a number of journalism awards.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Our final episode for 2024! This is part 2 of our speed round - answering your questions! If you have a question for the Wigs, feel free to shout out to us onFacebook. And don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe to the podcast.  Have a happy and safe holiday break and new year to all our lovely, loyal listeners. We love you! Jim, Flic, Manny and Steve.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

As a finale for 2024, the Wigs took listener questions and answered them in a speedround. This is Part 1 of the speed round covering a range of topics from the right todisconnect as an employee, to the Disability Royal Commission recommendations,the age of criminal responsibility and the use of good character evidence in sentenceproceedings. If you have a question for the Wigs, feel free to shout out to us onFacebook. And don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe to the podcast. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode Stephen sits down for a wide ranging chat with Barrister Ghassan Kassisieh. The discussion is lengthy and covers lgbt rights, international politics, refugees, the politicisation of gay rights in the Israeli / Palestinian conflict and comparative law, among other things. Ghassan is a Barrister at 12 Wentworth Selbourne chambers in Sydney after being called to the Bar in September 2024. He has a public and commercial law practice. Ghassan was previously Legal Director at Equality Australia where his legal policy advocacy contributed to over 16 LGBTIQ+ legislative reforms, including Australia’s first scheme regulating medical procedures performed on intersex people without capacity to consent. Ghassan also has over 13 years’ experience working as a solicitor in commercial litigation and regulatory matters at Gilbert + Tobin in Sydney and Freshfields in London. We hope you enjoy the chat!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.