Georgia Lewer

 BA (English), (Hons. Class I) / LLB, (Hons. Class I) (University of NSW).

Admitted as a legal practitioner in NSW in 2009.
Called to the Bar in NSW in 2014.

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Principal areas of practice

• Criminal law
• Appellate criminal law
• Commissions of inquiry and inquests
• Workplace Health and Safety (WHS)
• Statutory offences
• Administrative and public law

Professional background

• Tipstaff to the Hon. Justice David Kirby (2008)
• Solicitor and barrister, North Australian Aboriginal Justice Agency (2009-2011)

• Solicitor, Children’s Legal Service (Legal Aid NSW) and Aboriginal Legal Service (NSW/ACT) (2011-2012)

• Senior Solicitor, Inquiries, Crown Solicitor’s Office (2012-2014)

• Barrister, Forbes Chambers (current)

• Lecturer, UNSW

Some cases of note / reported decisions  

• AH v R [2023] NSWCCA 230 (with N Evans), appeal for child charged with terrorism offence, manifest excess; youth; harsh conditions of imprisonment; availability of parole;

 

• Ngo v R [2023] NSWCCA 201 (with A Faro), appeal for sexual offences, inconsistent verdicts, propriety of Crown address, anti-tendency direction;

 

• State of New South Wales v JS (Final) [2023] NSWSC 563, high risk sex offender, aged offending, whether unacceptable risk, ameliorative measures otherwise available;

 

• ​SC v R [2023] NSWCCA 111 (led by Johnston SC), Crown concession of error, appeal upheld, failure to comply with requirements for unsworn evidence;

 

• ​Safework for NSW v The Crown of Right in NSW [2023] NSWDC 134 (led by Taylor SC), Safework prosecution of Ambulance Service of NSW, access to drugs of dependence;

 

• Chandler v Transport for NSW [2023] NSWCA 6, review by the Court of Appeal for jurisdictional error by a District Court judge hearing an appeal under the Crimes (Appeal and Review) Act 2001, inferences from photographs, reversal of onus of proof;

 

• Glasheen v R [2022] NSWCCA 191, appeal against sentence, mandatory minimum sentences, construction of statute, concession of error;

 

• DS v R; DM v R [2022] NSWCCA 156 (led by Bashir SC), sentence appeal, juvenile convicted of murder, manifest excess, youth, disadvantage, meaning of objective seriousness;

 

• Smith v R [2022] NSWCCA 88, sentence appeal, sexual offences by teacher, transitional provisions and impact of change to standard non-parole period, manifest excess;

 

• Chartres-Abbott v R [2021] NSWCCA 239, (2021) 291 A Crim R 225, sentence appeal,  large commercial drug supply, manifest excess, use of discounts for aggregate sentences;

 

• R v Alferink [2021] NSWDC 473, drug supply sentence, availability of intensive correction order, backdating vs. discounting for prior custody;

 

• Minister for Home Affairs v Pender [2021] NSWSC 921;  [2021] NSWSC 1644; (2021) 363 FLR 309 (led by Johnston SC), Commonwealth application for continuing terrorism detention order, appointment of experts, unacceptable risk, less restrictive measures;

 

• DYS21 v Attorney-General (Cth) [2021] FCA 1331, review of refusal to grant Commonwealth parole, jurisdictional error, improper exercise of power, unreasonableness;

 

• R v DB [2021] NSWDC 213; (2021) 35 DCLR (NSW) 427; [2022] NSWCCA 87 (led by Strickland SC), voluntariness, automatism, sexsomnia, verdicts of not guilty; Crown appeal, construction of Mental Health (Forensic Provisions) Act 2020;

 

•  Jones (a pseudonym) v R [2021] NSWCCA 225, denial of procedural fairness on sentence, access to “letter of comfort”, resistance short of refusal to permit counsel to view;

 

• EPA v McInnes [2020] NSWLEC 37 (led by S Pritchard SC), prosecution of environmental offence, Poisons Act, meaning of “store”, criminal negligence standard;

 

• IW v R [2019] NSWCCA 311 (led by Bashir SC), historical child sexual offences, unreasonable verdicts, credibility evidence of accused, rebuttal of good character, grossly impermissible cross-examination by Crown, replay of recorded evidence of complainant;

 

• R v KE [2019] NSWDC 349, sexual offence, exclusion of DNA evidence, “trace DNA”, possibility of transference, risk of misuse, relevance, danger of unfair prejudice;

 

• State of NSW v Guider [2019] NSWSC 646; (No 2) [2019] NSWSC 1145 (led by M Johnston SC); (No 3) [2020] NSWSC 209, continuing detention order, extended supervision order, order for costs against the State;

 

• Brown v R [2018] NSWCCA 257, sentence appeal, denial of procedural fairness, incompetence of counsel, failure to advise about giving evidence;

 

• Costello v R [2017] NSWCCA 32 (sentence appeal, “fresh evidence”, hardship to third parties, illness of family member);

 

• Perish v R  [2015] NSWCCA 98; Perish v R [2014] NSWCCA 233; Perish v R [2014] NSWCCA 129; Perish v R [2016] NSWCCA 89 (led by H Dhanji SC) (murder conviction appeal, various interlocutory motions, claim for legal professional privilege, fresh evidence, admissibility of hearsay, admissibility “over objection”, unreasonable verdict ground);

 

• R v A2 & Ors (No 1) [2015] NSWSC 894 (led by D Jordan SC) (application to exclude evidence obtained pursuant to telephone warrants issued by magistrate, statutory interpretation of the Telephone (Interception and Access Act) 1979 (Cth));

 

• R v Hamzy [2016] NSWSC 1512 (led by M Johnston SC) (murder trial, shoot with intent, self-defence, proportionality, manslaughter verdict);

   

• Counsel, Royal Commission into Trade Union Governance and Corruption;

 

• Australian Crime Commission v LB [2009] NTSC 43; (2009) 25 NTLR 30; 234 FLR 15 (led by M Abbott QC) (application to set aside subpoena to Australian Crime Commission, legitimate forensic purpose, public interest immunity);

   

• George v O’Neil [2009] NTSC 41; (2009) 24 NTR 228 (error on warrant of commitment, validity of warrant issued after expiration of sentence, when court is functus officio);

 

• Mununggurr v Gordon and Anor, Mununggurr v Balchin and Anor, Mununggurr v Gordon and Anor, Mununggurr v Gordon, Mununggurr v Gordon and Mununggurr v Balchin [2011] NTSC 82; (2011) 30 NTLR 45; 253 FLR 426 (judicial review proceedings relating to mental illness defence, content and use of Chief Health Officer’s certificates);

   

• Olsen v Sims [2010] NTCA 8; (2010) 28 NTLR 116; 245 FLR 64; 206 A Crim R 454 (led by J Tippett QC) (appeal against sentence, repeal of offence and replacement with new offence with mandatory minimum sentence);

  
A more comprehensive list of cases is available here.

Papers and publications

• “Agencies’ powers of search and seizure”, Crime and punishment and everything in between: Criminal law & inquiries update (CSO), 21 May 2014.

 

• “Judicial review of search warrants”, Central South Eastern Regional ALS conference, 3 May 2014.

 

• “Government Privilege", Legal Manager’s Forum, 11 October 2013.

 

• “Criminal and Welfare Rights Collaboration: Centrelink Debts and Prosecution”, National Legal Aid Best Practice Conference, 7 July 2011.

 

• “Innovations in the Top End – Alcohol Court and CREDIT Court for Indigenous Offenders”, IAP Scientific Conference, The Law, the Offender & Psychiatry, 17 October 2009

 

• “Identifying Children in Relation to Criminal Proceedings” Communications Law Bulletin in Sep/Oct 2008.

For further details or inquiries regarding Georgia Lewer’s areas of expertise, curriculum vitae, fees and terms of engagement, please contact her Clerk.
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