Patricia Bergin is a retired Australian jurist who served as a Justice of the Supreme Court of New South Wales from 2005 to 2021. Prior to her appointment to the bench, she practiced as a barrister, specializing in commercial law, equity, and administrative law.
She is widely known for presiding over the Bergin Inquiry (officially the Independent Inquiry into the Operations of Crown Sydney), commissioned by the NSW Independent Liquor and Gaming Authority (ILGA) in 2020. The inquiry investigated the suitability of Crown Resorts to hold a gaming licence for its Barangaroo casino in Sydney. Her final report, delivered in February 2021, found Crown Resorts unsuitable to hold the licence at that time, citing facilitation of money laundering, junket operations linked to organized crime, and governance failures. The inquiry's findings led to significant regulatory reform and corporate restructuring within the Australian casino industry.
Bergin graduated with a Bachelor of Laws from the University of Sydney. She was appointed Senior Counsel (SC) in 1999. Following her retirement from the Supreme Court in 2021, she has continued to serve in judicial and quasi-judicial capacities, including as an Acting Judge of Appeal and as the inaugural Chair of the National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC) Advisory Board (appointed 2023).
