Emily Cooper

Emily’s practice focuses on government litigation as well as coronial and administrative law.

She is available for and continues to be briefed in a diverse range of litigation including matters for the Workers’ Compensation Prosecution Unit, State Director of Public Prosecutions, Queensland Building and Construction Commission, various Hospital and Health Services, Resources Safety and Health, Queensland Corrective Services and the Queensland Police Service.

Her practice spans a broad spectrum of sectors including civil applications, merits review processes and other applications for health and guardianship services in the Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal and Appeals Tribunal, coronial applications in the District Court, coronial inquests and regulatory prosecutions and associated litigation. 

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Prior to commencing at the Bar, Emily worked for the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions, Crown Law, the Australian Government Solicitor and as Counsel Assisting the State Coroner.

With fourteen years’ experience working as a solicitor advocate in public law litigation for both the Queensland and Australian governments, Emily draws on this experience in conducting various types of prosecutions,

civil matters and applications, coronial and administrative law cases.

Emily has also appeared pro bono in the Court of Appeal for criminal defendants and assisted counsel appearing for the Crime and Corruption Commission.  She is familiar with and available to be briefed on applications pursuant to the Dangerous Prisoners (Sexual Offenders) Act 2003 and has experience appearing in the Mental Health Review Tribunal.

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In her work as Counsel Assisting the State Coroner, Emily appeared on a range of

voluminous high public interest inquests including the death of Manus Island refugee Hamid Khazaei and the 2015-2016 deaths by police shooting.  Emily was recently Counsel Assisting for the inquest into the death of Nauruan refugee Omid Masoumali.

Recent cases include: 

• Morant v Ryan (The State Coroner) [2023] QCA 109

• Karamaroudis v Queensland Police Service & Ors [2023] QCA 217

• R v O'Keefe [2023] QCA 116

• Parsons v Ryan (State Coroner) [2022] QDC 237

• Scott v NPQ [2022] QCA 98

• R v Powell [2022] QCA 164

• R v Thompson [2022] QCA 214

• Attorney-General for the State of Queensland v Barnes [2022] QSC 177

• Attorney-General for the State of Queensland v Haidley [2022] QSC 196

• Director-General, Department of Justice and Attorney-General v MAP [2022] QCATA 34

Recent coronial inquests for which findings have been handed down: 

• Inquest into the death of John Schulte (2023)

• Inquest into the death of Tina Greer (2023)

• Inquest into the death of Omid Masoumali (2022)