THE AFL has on Monday appointed senior lawyer Bernard Quinn QC to lead the independent review into Associate Professor Paul McCrory’s historical medical research and advice provided to the AFL.
Mr Quinn is a commercial law, public law and product liability law specialist with Royal Commission (Victorian Bushfires) and coronial inquest experience. Mr Quinn has extensive experience in dealing with matters involving complex medical/scientific research.
Professor of Neuroscience at the University of Queensland and Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital Michael O’Sullivan will provide expert medical advice to the independent review. Jane Lindgren of counsel will assist Mr Quinn in the conduct of the review.
The AFL has also released the Terms of Reference which will guide that work that is undertaken by the independent review.
In summary, the matters the subject of the independent review are:
- The work, research and/or advice Associate Professor Paul McCrory (McCrory) undertook for the AFL over time.
- Allegations of plagiarism of research or other academic articles by McCrory (which have, in part, been admitted).
- The circumstances surrounding McCrory’s undertaking to the Medical Board of Australia provided in May 2018 that he would not perform neurodiagnostic procedures and/or nerve conduction studies and/or electromyography.
- The circumstances in which McCrory treated or assessed AFL or AFLW players or retired players.
- Research projects announced, proposed, conducted or participated in by McCrory and the AFL including in relation to the risk of brain injury to players of Australian Football, the manner in which such projects were undertaken with McCrory’s involvement and the outcomes of such research.
- The nature and propriety of the relationship between McCrory and the AFL in his performance of McCrory’s work with the AFL including his representation of the AFL with external bodies.
AFL General Counsel Andrew Dillon welcomed the appointments of Mr Quinn, Professor O’Sullivan and Ms Lindgren and said the independent review would thoroughly consider the work and advice provided by Professor McCrory to the AFL.
“Protecting the health and wellbeing of all people who participate in our game is the highest priority for the AFL and we take concussion and the protection of the brain health of those playing our game extremely seriously. It is important that the independent review closely look at the questions that have been raised in relation to Professor McCrory’s work for the AFL,” Mr Dillon said.
While Associate Professor McCrory has no ongoing role with the AFL, was not employed by the AFL and was not the only provider of medical advice on concussion to the AFL, he was an important and long-standing adviser on concussion and he was understood by the AFL to be a pre-eminent expert in the field, including up until recently holding the position as Chair of the Concussion in Sport Group and in that capacity worked previously with many leading national and international professional sporting organisations.
As is common practice in academic institutions and other organisations in which allegations of plagiarism are made or admitted, the AFL believes it important as a matter of integrity to ascertain the status and the reliability of past research activities and outcomes, and clinical work in which Dr McCrory has been involved for the AFL.
The independent review will begin immediately, with the findings and recommendations of the review to be released publicly once completed.
