Lawyer, politician, dodgy character: Richard Meagher exemplified the dubious side of Australian society

Richard Meagher (c.1905) Background: Federation parade, Sydney (January 1, 1901). City of Sydney Archives/Public domain In Sydney, in the decades around Federation, Richard Meagher (1866–1931) was a prominent criminal defence solicitor, parliamentarian, city council alderman and player in the emerging Labor Party. For many, his name was also a byword for unethical and unscrupulous practice in public life. Patrick Mullins’ The Stained Man tells the story of Meagher’s rise, fall, and rise…