Prosecuting Crime in the Public Interest: How Tension between Independence and Accountability Threatens the Rule of Law in Australia

Author:   Kellie Toole (University of Adelaide, Australia)
Publisher:   Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
ISBN:  

9781509973248


Pages:   232
Publication Date:   15 January 2026
Format:   Paperback
Availability:   Manufactured on demand   Availability explained


Our Price $84.99 Quantity:  
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Prosecuting Crime in the Public Interest: How Tension between Independence and Accountability Threatens the Rule of Law in Australia


Overview

This book provides the first detailed analysis of the decision to prosecute made by the statutory Australian Offices of Director of Prosecution. It examines the system of prosecution as part of the executive branch of government, and the role and challenges of the individual prosecutors who make decisions within the system. It explores the tension between prosecutorial independence and prosecutorial accountability, and the paradox that political involvement in prosecutions is necessary for accountability and to uphold the public interest, but can compromise independence. The book makes a unique contribution to both Australian criminal law scholarship and to the international literature on criminal prosecution, by drawing on the sub-disciplines of criminal law and administrative law. It includes case studies on prosecuting child sexual abuse, rape, and government espionage, and comparisons with common law and civil law countries including the USA, the UK, Italy and South Africa.

Full Product Details

Author:   Kellie Toole (University of Adelaide, Australia)
Publisher:   Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
Imprint:   Hart Publishing
Dimensions:   Width: 15.60cm , Height: 2.50cm , Length: 23.40cm
Weight:   0.454kg
ISBN:  

9781509973248


ISBN 10:   1509973249
Pages:   232
Publication Date:   15 January 2026
Audience:   Professional and scholarly ,  College/higher education ,  Professional & Vocational ,  Tertiary & Higher Education
Format:   Paperback
Publisher's Status:   Forthcoming
Availability:   Manufactured on demand   Availability explained

Table of Contents

Part 1: The Problem : The Australian Attorney General 1. The Modern Problem 2. The English Origins 3. Australian Concerns Part 2: The Problematic Solution: The Australian Director of Public Prosecutions 4. The Continuing English Legacy 5. Prosecutorial and Executive Discretion 6. Nature of the Australian DPPs: A Political-Statutory Hybrid 7. The Reasonable Prospects of Conviction Test 8. The Public Interest Test 9. Accountability of the Attorney General 10. Accountability and the DPP 11. Conclusions

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Author Information

Kellie Toole is Lecturer at Adelaide Law School, University of Adelaide, Australia.

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Latest Reading Guide

NOV RG 20252

 

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