The Hon. John Coldrey was a Justice of the Supreme Court of Victoria for 17 years. He is currently Chairperson of the Victorian Institute of Forensic Medicine Council. From 1966-1981 he acted as defence counsel which included defending aboriginal accused in the Northern Territory of Australia. He was Director of Legal Services at the Central Land Council (Northern Territory) from 1982-1984 presenting land claims and negotiating mining agreements on behalf of aboriginal traditional owners .Between 1984 and 1991 he was the Victorian Director of Public Prosecutions as well as Chair of the Consultative Committee on Police Powers of Investigation whose recommendations resulted in the requirement that police interrogations be electronically recorded. In 2004 John Coldrey was awarded the Medal of the Society for his contribution to criminal law reform; in 2013 he was created an Honorary Fellow of Monash University; and in 2019 he was made a Member of the Order of Australia for ‘significant service to the law, and to the judiciary, to legal reform, and to the community’.