In the Queen's Birthday honours list for 2019 he became a member of the Order of Australia (AM) for "significant service to the law, to legal standards, and to education.
He was educated at Port Moresby International High School and Prince Alfred College and studied law and arts at Adelaide University.
[8] His 1999 thesis led to his first book, The Law of Defamation and the Internet (Oxford University Press),[9] which ran to three editions.
He also wrote Collins on Defamation (Oxford University Press), a text on the law of libel and slander in England and Wales.
[18] They are also major donors to Equality Australia (of which Vary is co-Chair),[19] Founders of the Victorian Pride Centre[20] and supporters of the Malthouse Theatre.
[25] Collins has written widely in other areas, including freedom of speech in the age of terrorism,[26] marriage equality[27] and the Indigenous Voice to Parliament.