Terence Rhoderick Hudson Cole, AO

Order of Australia

The Order of Australia is an order of chivalry established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, "for the purpose of according recognition to Australian citizens and other persons for achievement or for meritorious service"...

, RFD

Reserve Force Decoration

The Reserve Force Decoration is an Australian Military award given for long service by officers of the Reserve Forces. It is part of the suite of defence force service awards introduced in 1982, which also included the Defence Force Service Medal and the Reserve Force Medal The Reserve Force...

, QC

Queen's Counsel

Queen's Counsel , known as King's Counsel during the reign of a male sovereign, are lawyers appointed by letters patent to be one of Her [or His] Majesty's Counsel learned in the law...

 (born 31 October 1937), is an Australian jurist, known best for presiding over two Royal Commission

Royal Commission

In Commonwealth realms and other monarchies a Royal Commission is a major ad-hoc formal public inquiry into a defined issue. They have been held in various countries such as the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and Saudi Arabia...

s. Cole was born in Longreach, Queensland, and was educated at Fort Street High School

Fort Street High School

Fort Street High School is a co-educational, academically selective, public high school currently located at Petersham, an inner western suburb of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia....

 in Sydney and the University of Sydney

University of Sydney

The University of Sydney is a public university located in Sydney, New South Wales. The main campus spreads across the suburbs of Camperdown and Darlington on the southwestern outskirts of the Sydney CBD. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in Australia and Oceania...

. He was admitted to the bar in 1962, and appointed a QC in 1976. He was appointed to the Supreme Court of New South Wales

Supreme Court of New South Wales

The Supreme Court of New South Wales is the highest state court of the Australian State of New South Wales...

 in 1994, and served until 1998. From 1992 to 1998 he was Deputy Judge Advocate-General of the Australian Defence Force

Australian Defence Force

The Australian Defence Force is the military organisation responsible for the defence of Australia. It consists of the Royal Australian Navy , Australian Army, Royal Australian Air Force and a number of 'tri-service' units...

.

He was commissioner of the 2000-2003 Cole Royal Commission

Royal Commission into the Building and Construction Industry

The Royal Commission into the Building and Construction Industry was a Royal Commission established by the Australian government to inquire into and report upon alleged misconduct in the building and construction industry in Australia...

 into the Building and Construction Industry and the 2005-2006 Cole Inquiry

Cole Inquiry

The Cole Inquiry, formally the Inquiry into certain Australian companies in relation to the UN Oil-For-Food Programme was a Royal Commission set up by the Government of Australia in November 2005...

 investigating allegations that AWB Limited

AWB Limited

AWB Limited is a major grain marketing organisation based in Australia. It was a government body known as the Australian Wheat Board until 1 July 1999, when the AWB was transformed into a private company, owned by wheat growers...

 paid illegal bribes to the Iraq

Iraq

Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....

i regime of Saddam Hussein

Saddam Hussein

Saddam Hussein Abd al-Majid al-Tikriti was the fifth President of Iraq, serving in this capacity from 16 July 1979 until 9 April 2003...

 in order to secure wheat sales to Iraq.

On 31 March 2008, Cole was appointed to head an inquiry into the loss of the cruiser HMAS Sydney

HMAS Sydney (1934)

HMAS Sydney , named for the Australian city of Sydney, was one of three Modified Leander class light cruisers operated by the Royal Australian Navy...

 in a mutually destructive battle during World War II.