The Institute of Criminology, Sydney was formally recognised by the University of Sydney Senate in 1966 as a body within the Faculty of Law. Today, the primary functions of the Institute are publishing; including books and the journal Current Issues in Criminal Justice, teaching, research and public education.

Although located within the School of Law, the Institute is unique in Australia for pioneering a multidisciplinary, critical approach to criminology. Standing at the leading edge of Australian criminological research, teaching and publishing, the Institute facilitates dialogue and debate within and between the international practical and critical criminology community, as well as addressing broad community needs in providing information and informing policy and practise. Our academic staff offer an impressive and comprehensive range of expertise in all areas of criminological research and teaching, from legal analysis to critical theory; opportunities to study at undergraduate and postgraduate level with leaders in their field abound at the Institute.

Current Issues in Criminal Justice, the prestigious peer-reviewed journal published by The Institute Press has been the forum for many a heated academic debate and constantly maintains high standards of incisive research and commentary.The Institute Series of Books authored by established and new researchers and thinkers has now reached 27 in number, with a second edition planned of Scott Poynting’s well-received and much discussed ‘Bin Laden in the Suburbs, Criminalising the Arab Other’ Other recent publications have included a searing examination of the events in the notorious Jika Jika High Security prison in the eighties - ‘Imprisoning Resistance, Life and Death in an Australian Supermax’ is an impressive debut by an exciting young Melbourne academic Bree Carlton. Cosmas Moisidis offers an incisive analysis of the essence of the criminal pre-trial process in ‘Criminal Discovery:From Truth to Proof and Back Again’; and Dr Cindy Davids from the Centre for Policing, Intelligence and Counter Terrorism comprehensively examines aspects of police accountability in ‘Conflict of Interest in Policing: Problems, Practices, and Principles’

The Institute's objectives are:

• Ongoing expansion of publishing activities within the Institute
• Continued diversification of public education predominantly through the provision of public and professional seminar series and media commentary
• Further review and improvement of teaching commitment and delivery
• Creation of a research network which complements the State and National needs of the public and private sector, as well as a wide range of community interests

The Institute's principal areas of activity currently involve: 

• Publication of the journal Current Issues in Criminal Justice; Books and texts; Occasional papers; Seminar and Conference Papers; and other related information
Assistance with the delivery of courses in Criminology at undergraduate and postgraduate levels  
• Organisation of a program of public seminars on topics of contemporary concern in fields of criminal justice
 
• Provision of specialist seminars which deal with particular areas of crime and criminal justice
 
• Provision of service and information to corporate, individual, and student Members
 
• Coordination and presentation of a wide-range of applied and theoretical research initiatives concerned with crime and criminal justice in New South Wales and throughout Australia
 

The Advisory Committee functions as a consultative body to the Institute, but is otherwise independent. Its members provide intellectual guidance and policy advice regarding the Institute's future direction. Members are appointed by invitation and include members of the judiciary, academics and criminal justice professionals.

Chair
The Honourable J Spigelman, AC, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of New South Wales

Advisor to the Director
The Honourable Justice M Kirby, AC, CMG, High Court of Australia

Members
Mr B Barbour, New South Wales Ombudsman
The Honourable Justice RO Blanch, AM, Chief Judge, District Court, Sydney
Professor J Braithwaite, Australian National University
Mr P Byrne, SC, Barrister
Dr D Chappell, Professor, University of Sydney, Professorial Fellow, University of Wollongong
Mr P Cloran, Deputy Chief Magistrate, Local Court of New South Wales
Mr N Cowdery, AM, QC, Director of Public Prosecutions
His Honour Judge R Dive, Senior Judge, NSW Drug Court
Professor P Grabosky, Australian National University
Mr L Grant, Assistant Commissioner, New South Wales Department of Corrective Services
Mr A Haesler, SC, Barrister and New South Wales Public Defender
Professor RW Harding, Inspector of Custodial Services, Western Australia
The Honourable Justice PJ Hidden, AM, Supreme Court of New South Wales
His Honour Judge M Marien, SC, Judge of the District Court of New South Wales
His Honour Judge SR Norrish, QC, Judge of the District Court of New South Wales
The Honourable Dr RJN Purvis, AM, QC, Deputy President, Administrative Appeals Tribunal
Ms J Sanders, Youth Justice Coalition
The Honourable Justice PJ Staunton, AM, Industrial Relations Commission
Mr B Thomas, Director, Crime Prevention Division, New South Wales Attorney-General's Department
Mr PG Ward
Dr D Weatherburn, Director, New South Wales Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research
Ms P Musgrave, Director, Criminal Law Review Division, New South Wells Attorney-General's Department
His Honour Judge GD Woods, QC, Judge of the District Court of New South Wales

The Management Committee oversees the administrative, public education and research activities of the Institute. The Management Committee is comprised of the teaching and research staff and the administrative staff of the Institute of Criminology. Additional members of the Committee are as follows:

Committee

Associate Professor E Baldry, University of New South Wales
Associate Professor K Biber, University of Technology, Sydney
Professor D Brown, University of New South Wales
Associate Professor J Cashmore, University of Sydney
Associate Professor M Carmody, University of Western Sydney
Professor C Cunneen, University of New South Wales
Professor G Triggs, Dean, Faculty of Law, University of Sydney

For information about Individual, Student, or Corporate Membership, or information about subscriptions to Current Issues In Criminal Justice, go to Membership and Subscriptions