Matthew John Collins (born 17 February 1970) is an Australian

barrister A barrister is a type of lawyer in common law jurisdiction (area), jurisdictions. Barristers mostly specialise in courtroom advocacy and litigation. Their tasks include arguing cases in courts and tribunals, drafting legal pleadings, jurisprud ...

. He practises predominantly in media law, particularly

defamation Defamation is a communication that injures a third party's reputation and causes a legally redressable injury. The precise legal definition of defamation varies from country to country. It is not necessarily restricted to making assertions ...

, as well as constitutional and commercial law. He is best known for having acted in a number of high-profile defamation and free speech cases. In the Queen's Birthday honours list for 2019 he became a member of the Order of Australia (AM) for "significant service to the law, to legal standards, and to education." He is a former president of the

Australian Bar Association The Australian Bar Association (ABA) is the peak body representing more than 6,000 barristers throughout Australia. The ABA was established in 1963 to serve, promote and represent its members, and advocate for fair and equal justice for all. ...

Early life

Collins was born in Adelaide to Robyn Dolan and John Collins. He was educated at

Port Moresby International High School Port Moresby International School (PMIS) is a private international school in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea providing education from year 7 through 12 to both the Papua New Guinean and expatriate community. The school is one of the 20 establishme ...

and

Prince Alfred College Prince Alfred College is a private, independent, day school, day and boarding school for boys, located on Dequetteville Terrace, Kent Town, South Australia, Kent Town, near the Adelaide city centre, centre of Adelaide, South Australia. One of th ...

and studied law and arts at

Adelaide University Adelaide University is a planned public university, public research university based in Adelaide, South Australia. Established in 2024, it will combine the University of Adelaide, the third-oldest university in Australia, and the University of ...

. He was associate to Justice

Donnell Ryan Donnell Michael Ryan (3 June 1941 – 26 August 2023) was an Australian barrister, solicitor and judge of the Federal Court of Australia. He served on the Federal Court of Australia from 29 September 1986 until 2 June 2011 and was a member of ...

of the

Federal Court of Australia The Federal Court of Australia is an Australian superior court which has jurisdiction to deal with most civil disputes governed by federal law (with the exception of family law matters), along with some summary (less serious) and indictable (mo ...

in Melbourne and a solicitor at Mallesons Stephen Jaques (now

King & Wood Mallesons King & Wood Mallesons (KWM) is the largest international commercial law firm based in the Asia–Pacific, Asia-Pacific. It has 26 offices and over 3,000 legal professionals across Australia, Hong Kong, China, Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore and the U ...

). Collins has a partner, Leonard Vary, who is the CEO of the

Sidney Myer Fund The Myer Foundation is a major Australian philanthropic organisation. History The Sidney Myer Charitable Trust was established by the will of Sidney Myer, who died in 1934, leaving a portion of his estate for the benefit of the community. Myer's ...

and the

Myer Foundation The Myer Foundation is a major Australian philanthropic organisation. History The Sidney Myer Charitable Trust was established by the will of Sidney Myer, who died in 1934, leaving a portion of his estate for the benefit of the community. Myer's ...

. They live in Melbourne. Collins is the older brother of Luke Collins, journalist and former New York Correspondent of ''

The Australian Financial Review The ''Australian Financial Review'' (''AFR'') is an Australian compact daily newspaper with a focus on business, politics and economic affairs. The newspaper is based in Sydney, New South Wales, and has been published continuously since its foun ...

Professional life

Collins was admitted to practise as a lawyer in 1994 and became a

in 1999. He was appointed Senior Counsel in 2011 and

Queen's Counsel A King's Counsel (Post-nominal letters, post-nominal initials KC) is a senior lawyer appointed by the monarch (or their Viceroy, viceregal representative) of some Commonwealth realms as a "Counsel learned in the law". When the reigning monarc ...

in 2014. Collins holds a PhD from

Melbourne University The University of Melbourne (colloquially known as Melbourne University) is a public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in the state of Victoria. Its ...

. Hi
1999 thesis
led to his first book, ''The Law of Defamation and the Internet'' (

Oxford University Press Oxford University Press (OUP) is the publishing house of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world. Its first book was printed in Oxford in 1478, with the Press officially granted the legal right to print books ...

), which ran to three editions. He also wrote
Collins on Defamation
' (Oxford University Press), a text on the law of libel and slander in England and Wales. Collins has acted in a number of significant media law cases, including

Andrew Bolt Andrew Bolt (born 26 September 1959) is an Australian conservative social and political commentator. He has worked at the News Corp-owned newspaper company The Herald and Weekly Times (HWT) for many years, for both '' The Herald'' and its succ ...

's trial for racial discrimination under section 18C of the ''Racial Discrimination Act'', the

Joe Hockey Joseph Benedict Hockey (born 2 August 1965) is an Australian former politician and diplomat. He was the Member of Parliament for Division of North Sydney, North Sydney from 1996 Australian federal election, 1996 until 2015. He was the Treasurer ...

Fairfax Media Fairfax Media was a media (communication), media company in Australia and New Zealand, with investments in newspaper, magazines, radio and digital properties. The company was founded by John Fairfax as John Fairfax and Sons, who purchased ''The ...

‘Treasurer for Sale' litigation, and actress

Rebel Wilson Rebel Melanie Elizabeth Wilson (born Melanie Elizabeth Bownds; 2 March 1980) is an Australian actress, comedian and producer. After graduating from the Australian Theatre for Young People in 2003, Wilson began appearing in the SBS comedy ser ...

's defamation case against Bauer Media, which reportedly resulted at the time in the highest damages award in a defamation case in Australian history. This award was subsequently reduced on appeal. Collins represented Jordan Shanks-Markovina also known as

friendlyjordies Jordan Shanks-Markovina (born 18 August 1989), also known online as friendlyjordies, is an Australian political commentator, journalist, stand-up comedian and YouTuber. His content often discusses contemporary Australian cultural and politica ...

in the defamation case brought by the NSW Deputy Premier

John Barilaro Giovanni Domenic Barilaro (; born 14 November 1971) is an Australian former politician who served as the 18th deputy premier of New South Wales and the leader of the New South Wales National Party, NSW National Party from 2016 to 2021. He was t ...

and the ABC's

Four Corners Four Corners is a region of the Southwestern United States consisting of the southwestern corner of Colorado, southeastern corner of Utah, northeastern corner of Arizona, and northwestern corner of New Mexico. Most of the Four Corners regio ...

program in Federal Court proceedings brought by disgraced cosmetic surgeon Daniel Lanzer. He represented

Network Ten Network 10 (commonly known as the 10 Network, Channel 10 or simply 10) is an Australian commercial television network. It is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Paramount Global's Paramount Networks UK & Australia, UK & Australia division and is o ...

in defamation proceedings brought by

Bruce Lehrmann Bruce Lehrmann (born June 1995) is an Australian former political staffer, who is primarily known for his involvement in the 2021 Australian Parliament House sexual misconduct allegations. He grew up in Toowoomba and moved to Canberra for study ...

, and Victorian Opposition leader

John Pesutto John Pesutto (; born 5 September 1970) is an Australian politician and lawyer who has served as the member for Electoral district of Hawthorn, Hawthorn in the Victorian Legislative Assembly since 2022 Victorian state election, 2022, having prev ...

in proceedings brought by

Moira Deeming Moira Deeming is an Australian politician and member of the Victorian Liberal Party. She has been a member of the Victorian Legislative Council, the upper house of the Parliament of Victoria, for the Western Metropolitan Region since November ...

. Collins is a senior fellow at the

Melbourne Law School Melbourne Law School is one of the professional graduate schools of the University of Melbourne. Located in Carlton, Victoria, Melbourne Law School is Australia's oldest law school, and offers Juris Doctor, J.D., Master of Laws, LL.M, Doctor of P ...

and a former member of th
Melbourne Law School Foundation Board
With his partner, Collins has established a scholarship for disadvantaged students in his father's name. They are also major donors to Equality Australia (of which Vary is co-Chair), Founders of the Victorian Pride Centre and supporters of the

Malthouse Theatre Malthouse Theatre is the resident theatre company of The Malthouse building in Southbank, part of the Melbourne Arts Precinct. In the 1980s it was known as the Playbox Theatre Company and was housed in the Playbox Theatre in Melbourne's CBD ...

. Collins was the president of the

from November 2021 to November 2022. He was vice-president from November 2019 to November 2021. Collins is a former member of the council of the

Victorian Bar The Victorian Bar is the bar association of the Australian State of Victoria. The 2024-2025 President of the Bar is Justin Hannebery KC. Its members are barristers registered to practice in Victoria. Those who have been admitted to practice ...

and served as its president from November 2017 to November 2019, senior vice-president, chair of its Readers' Course Sub-Committee, executive of its Education and Professional Development Committee and member of its Indictable Crime Certificate Committee. He is a member of the Board and Council of th
Australasian Institute of Judicial Administration
and a Fellow of the

Australian Academy of Law The Australian Academy of Law (AAL) is a permanent, non-government organisation devoted to the advancement of the discipline of law. According to its Constitution, the Australian Academy of Law comprises individuals of exceptional distinction from a ...

. Collins has written widely in other areas, including freedom of speech in the age of terrorism, marriage equality and the Indigenous Voice to Parliament. In 2020, he was named one of Australia's 50 Outstanding LGBTI+ Leaders.

Bibliography

*
The Law of Defamation and the Internet
(''2001, 2005 and 2010). Oxford University Press. . *
Collins on Defamation
' (2014). Oxford University Press. .

References

External links

Victorian Bar Association profile
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Collins, Matthew 1970 births Living people 20th-century Australian lawyers University of Adelaide alumni University of Melbourne alumni Members of the Order of Australia Australian King's Counsel 21st-century Australian lawyers Australian barristers Lawyers from Adelaide