A key figure in James Hird’s battle with the AFL wants the resignation of Andrew Demetriou to prompt a wide-ranging overhaul of how the league operates.

Ian Hanke, a prominent media and political advisor, said the AFL’s behaviour during the Essendon supplements scandal showed a culture of bullying in how the league dealt with these sorts of problems.

Hird’s legal firm Ashurst brought in Hanke last year as the Essendon coach dealt with the fallout from the scandal.

Days before last year’s finals, Essendon were kicked out of the top eight and Hird received a 12-month suspension as part of a controversial negotiated settlement with the AFL.

While Essendon are now patching up their differences with the league, Hird remains insistent he did nothing wrong.

The ASADA investigation of Essendon also remains unresolved.

“The issue is not just about Mr Demetriou’s resignation – the issue is one of a broader cultural problem that seems to exist within the AFL,” Hanke told AAP.

“We’ve seen over the course of the past year instances of what I would term bullying, which I think is quite inappropriate.

“There are issues with the senior echelons of the AFL.

“This should be used as a catalyst for change – I personally think any appointments to senior positions within the AFL should come from the outside, rather than internal promotion that may or not perpetuate this particular culture.”

Hanke, who no longer is providing advice for Hird, also questioned the role of the AFL Commission in the process that led to the sanctions against Essendon and Hird.

“The AFL needs an independent body that can actually review these processes – where the AFL can operate as a judge, jury and executioner,” he said.

“The process and structures they have deny people natural justice.

“Until there is an independent body that can manage these processes, it’s quite likely that other people will be denied natural justice in the future.

“That is entirely inappropriate for an organisation such as the AFL.”

Hanke said regardless of who takes over from Demetriou, the league must change how it operates.

“Nobody can be assured of being treated fairly and independently while this current system exists,” he said.

“My belief is the AFL should use this resignation as a catalyst for genuine reform – not just to say `the CEO has gone and everything can go on as before’, because it cannot.”