How do Royal Commissions work (and are they worth it)? With Betty King, Jack Rush and Jon Faine
From Big Ideas by ABC Australia
May 4, 2026 · 55 min
About this episode
The episode discusses the workings and implications of Royal Commissions in Australia.
They're Australia's highest form of inquiry on matters of public importance. But they've also become the go-to solution when corruption, misconduct or systems failures are exposed. So are they just a lawyer's picnic? Or a necessary reckoning? The conversation How do Royal Commissions work? And How Do We Assess Their Impact? was recorded at the Sorrento Writers Festival on Friday 24 April 2026. Speakers Betty King QC Former Justice of the Supreme Court of Victoria (2005 - 2015), former County Court judge, former state prosecutor, former criminal barristerChairperson of the Voluntary Assisted Dying Review Board Jack Rush KC Barrister, counsel assisting the Victorian Royal Commission into the 2009 Black Saturday Bushfires Jon Faine (host)Former longtime presenter Mornings, ABC Radio MelbourneFormer lawyerVice Chancellors Fellow, University of MelbourneAuthor, Apollo & Thelma
People in this episode
Host: Jon Faine
Guests: Betty King, Jack Rush
Topics covered
- Royal Commissions
- public inquiry
- corruption
- misconduct
- legal system
- impact assessment
Keywords
- Royal Commissions
- inquiry
- public importance
- corruption
- misconduct
- legal system
- impact
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: Supreme Court of Victoria, Voluntary Assisted Dying Review Board, ABC Radio Melbourne
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