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Michael Riches

Independent Commissioner Against Corruption (ICAC) for the Northern Territory

Independent Commissioner Against Corruption (ICAC) for the Northern Territory

Faculty: Expert contributors

NT, Australia

Areas of expertise

  • Regulation

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The Independent Commissioner Against Corruption is an independent statutory office holder with functions under the ICAC Act.

Commissioner Riches holds an Honours Degree in Law and Legal Practice from Flinders University (South Australia), a Degree in Arts and a Diploma in Public Safety. He spent almost 9 years as a South Australian police officer, working in a number of operational and corporate roles, including general policing duties, tactical teams, police communications and media liaison.

After obtaining his Law and Legal Practice Degree, Commissioner Riches worked as a solicitor in the Police Legal Branch before moving to the Crown Solicitor’s Office, where he worked in the Civil Litigation Section, Advising Section and as counsel in the Crown Counsel Section. He advised state government agencies on a wide variety of matters and appeared as counsel in a number of cases, including several high-profile coronial inquests. He also worked part-time as a tutor at the University of Adelaide Law School.

As a member of the Public Integrity Reform team, Commissioner Riches took a lead role in the establishment of the SA Office of the Independent Commissioner Against Corruption and the Office for Public Integrity. When those offices commenced, he held a position as a senior legal officer before being appointed Director of Legal Services and Reviews. In December 2016, Mr Riches was appointed Chief Executive Officer of the ICAC and the OPI.

He became the South Australian Deputy Independent Commissioner Against Corruption on 26 October 2018.

Commissioner Riches commenced as the Independent Commissioner Against Corruption of the Northern Territory on 6 July 2021.

He is currently studying for a Masters Degree in Corruption and Governance through the Centre for the Study of Corruption, University of Sussex, England.