This section of my work captures some of my early work that is linked to my interest in law & economics and politics as well as my longstanding work related to building secure data spaces and transforming non-research (e.g. administrative) data for analysis and insights. My interest in law and economics stems in part from my having practiced law for five years in Washington, D.C.

Peer-Reviewed Academic & Policy Contributions

Highest Cited (Google Scholar), in order of publication year in order of citation count:

1. "Implementation of Anti-Discrimination Policy: Does Judicial Selection Matter?” with Timothy Besley, American Law and Economic Review, 15(1): 212-251, 2013 Publication Link 

Additional Publications (Peer-Reviewed Academic & Policy Reports by publication year)

2. "Youthview: a Platform for Interactive Visualizations to Explore Youth Disadvantage" with Ujjwal KC and Steeve Marchand, Data & Policy, 7: e69, (2025) Publication Link (also posted under poverty & education)

3. "The Melbourne Institute Data Lab, a Secure Access Environment for Informing Future Social and Economic Policy," with Chaminda Rajeev Samarage, The Australian Economic Review, 58(3):259-271, 2025 Publication Link 

4. "Youth Disadvantage and Employment: Building Place-Based Data-Driven Tools to Inform Communities and Guide Policy & Practice," Breaking Down Barriers Report, with Ujjwal KC and Steeve Marchand, 2024 Publication Link (also posted under poverty)

5. "Federal Sentencing Guidelines and Mandatory Minimum Sentences: Do Defendants Bargain in the Shadow of the Judge?” with Chantale LaCasse, Journal of Law and Economics, XLII (1, Part 2), 245-270, 1999 Publication Link 

6. "Does inter-judge disparity really matter? An analysis of the effects of Sentencing Reforms in Three Federal District Courts,” International Review of Law and Economics, 17(3):337-366, 1997 Publication Link 

Contributions to Books:

7. "An Introduction,” with Peter Dawkins, Chapter 1, Towards Evidence-Based Policy Solutions in Economic and Social Policy, Melbourne Institute: Applied Economic & Social Research, 2022 Publication Link 

8. "Maximising evidence-based policy analysis through data sharing,” with Chaminda Rajeev Samarage, Chapter 8, Towards Evidence-Based Policy Solutions in Economic and Social Policy, Melbourne Institute: Applied Economic & Social Research, 2022 Publication Link 

9. "Federal Sentencing Guidelines and Mandatory Minimum Sentences: Do Defendants Bargain in the Shadow of the Judge?” with Chantale LaCasse, publication reprinted in The Economics of Crime, edited by Professor Isaac Ehrlich and Dr Zhiqiang Liu. A three-volume book of readings with an introduction outlining the evolution of the subject and the structure of the book. Part of the collection: "International Library of Critical Writings in Economics" (Mark Blaug, general editor), Edward Elgar Publishing Ltd., Cheltenham, UK and Northampton, MA, 2006.

Working Papers / Works in Progress

10. "Coordinated Research Environments: A framework for knowledge sharing within secure data enclaves” (working title), with Maxim Ananeyev, Ana Gamarra Rondinel, Ujjwal KC, and Rajeev Samarage

11. "An overview of the Melbourne Institute–Roy Morgan Taking the Pulse of the Nation Survey” (working title), with Ferdi Botha

Non-Peer-Reviewed Reports/Commentary

12. Submission for review of Data and Transparancy Act and Response to Committee Draft, contributor to University of Melbourne Submission, 2025

13. "Less about climate change, more on reducing migration: here's what matters most to Australian voters,” with Ferdi Botha, 2024

14. "Breaking down barriers community profiles,” with Maxim Ananyev and Chaminda Rajeev Samarage, Research Insight 07/23 and Breaking Down Barriers Rapid Analysis, 2023 Publication Link 

15. Data and Digital Government Digital Strategy Submission (Commonwealth Govt), July 2023 (drafted response by MI and UoM)

16. "Maximising Evidence-Based Policy Analysis,” The Australian, 2022

17. "How can we Protect our Children Against COVID-19?” with Ragan Petrie, MI Research Insight, 2021

18. "Maximising Value from Data: Navigating the Opportunities and Challenges,” IPAA Speeches from 2019: A Year of Public Sector Speeches, Institute of Public Administration Australia, ACT, 74-85, 2020

19. "Roundtable Discussion of Immigration,” other participants: David Card, Orley Ashenfelter, Daniel McFadden, Jason Potts, and Bob Gregory, Contemporary Economic Policy, 38(1): 7-29, 2020

20. “Lack of Women in Economics ‘Bad for Business’”, Pursuit, U of Melbourne, 2017

21. "The Keys to Effective Collaboration,” CSWEP News, Issue III, 2017

22. Review of Good & Plenty: The Creative Successes of American Arts Funding, by Tyler Cowen, Journal of Economic Literature, XLVI(1): 189-191, 2008