“Our jails are full of people; suspended sentences have all been abolished. There is always this strong law and order campaign that governments speak of, because it’s attractive to the voters, but really, if all we do is send people to jail, that’s not going to be a solution for the long term. It does nothing for rehabilitation, it destroys lives, it makes people unhappy.”

“I’m just a fairly typical criminal law barrister,” Mr. Georgiou tells Neos Kosmos. Focusing on Criminal Law, he has done so for more than two decades now and has gained solid experience in a number of complex trials, including terrorism cases.
George Georgiou SC has been practicing law since 1986. His legal journey saw him make his way up to Senior Counsel last year.
He grew up in Melbourne and says his Cypriot upbringing was typical of the hardworking migrants of his time. But it wasn’t his parents’ idea to go into law; in fact, it came up as something accidental.
“I think I wanted to be a doctor, but I couldn’t stand the sight of blood, which is interesting because I now have to look at it a lot,” he says with a laugh.
As soon as he stepped into university, he decided to change direction. A conversation with a law student was all that was needed to trigger his interest in pursuing legal studies; he literally stumbled into law.
Being exposed to law for the first time, it felt natural, something he related to without difficulty. Criminal law revealed itself to be the right fit for him in the early years of his career, as he enjoys “representing the underdog”.
After spending a year working overseas in a small firm in London, he came back to Australia and became a member of the Victorian Bar Association.
Back in those years, there had been a tradition of Melbourne barristers going up to Alice Springs to work. So did Georgiou, the only difference being that the eight-week locum he was planning to do turned out to be seven years. A sense of commitment to duty and the experience of a culture so different and unique was what made him stay in the harsh environment of the Alice longer than he intended.
For the Aborigines, a people who have suffered “a lot of injustices, a lot of prejudice, a lot of racism, a lot of poverty”, he found solace in the fact he did what he could to help. It was as simple as that.
When the time came for him to return to Melbourne, rather than choosing private practice, he once again went off the beaten track, taking up the position of public defender at Legal Aid and serving there for six years.
And, even though Georgiou returned to the Bar in 2007, he still does legal aid work.
“At the Criminal Bar, most do legal aid work,” he explains. “Generally if you do private work you get paid more, in that sense it’s preferable. But no, I’ve never said no to a legal aid case, and nor would I.”
Throughout his career pathway from London to Melbourne and Alice Springs, from private practice to legal aid, he was fortunate to meet a lot of law professionals who felt the same as him. In their commitment to social justice, he found inspiration and knowledge that he is still trying to convey to younger lawyers by offering training and mentoring assistance.
But being a lawyer is not all about representing clients. It involves agitating for fairer legislation and fairer sentencing options. It is a long way to solving these issues, in fact they are never going to go away, according to the senior counsel. But in no case should this prevent the continuous struggle for justice.
“We try and make a difference, but acknowledging that it’s only a small difference that we can make.”
Locking up people who commit crimes, while an easy approach in theory, may result in an undesired effect on people’s lives, nothing to do with the real essence of rehabilitation.
“Our jails are full of people; suspended sentences have all been abolished. There is always this strong law and order campaign that governments speak of, because it’s attractive to the voters, but really, if all we do is send people to jail, that’s not going to be a solution for the long term. It does nothing for rehabilitation, it destroys lives, it makes people unhappy.”
Georgiou describes the current justice system as a “four-wheel legal entity”, consisting of the judge, the jury, the prosecutor and the defence lawyer. If one of these wheels ceases to exist or function properly, then the whole system breaks down. In this sense, justice cannot be achieved when a system lacks strong defence representation.
Especially in severe terrorism cases – where he has appeared numerous times – legislation and attitudes are very strict, on behalf of the government and the community.
This is why in these cases he is “starting off behind the eightball”.
His rule is to maintain a clear dividing line between his personal thoughts and those of the client, not to allow his own political, religious or cultural thoughts to come between him and his client.
“Whether I agree or disagree with people’s beliefs doesn’t matter, it’s irrelevant. And that’s not my function as a barrister to agree or disagree with someone’s beliefs. My role is to ensure they have a fair trial.”
After all, proper representation for the accused and ensuring a fair trial is conducted is fundamental for a criminal justice system.
On the subject of the Greek crisis, the senior counsel talked about the need to ensure that the legal system is working properly within the society.
“I think what’s happening in Greece is terrible and it’s really a political economic solution that’s required. But the legal system has to be strong as it does in every society. If you don’t have a strong legal system there is that great risk of people’s rights being trampled, corruption, unaccountability.”
After all these years of trial experience, court procedure is still causing him anxiety.
It turns out to be just something he learns to accept as part of the job.
In terms of personal time and work life balance, things are not so easy either.
“Most barristers who do the sort of work that I do work very hard, very long hours and on weekends.
“It’s very demanding, takes up a lot of your time.”
What seems to be compensating the situation is the satisfaction he finds in his job, in serving people and defending their rights.
Whether it is a not-guilty verdict or arguing about the appropriate sentence, achieving a good outcome for a client is always his number one concern.
After all, there is no ultimate goal to reach in the profession of a lawyer; it is more like a never-ending struggle.
“I’m still very optimistic that human rights, social justice will prevail in our community, but we have to keep pushing for it. We’re still fighting for it.”