Felicity Gerry QC is admitted at the International Criminal Court (ICC) and the Kosovo Specialist Chambers (KSC) in The Hague, to the Bar of England & Wales and the Victorian Bar, Australia. She has also had ad hoc admission in Hong Kong and Gibraltar. As an international QC she is regularly called upon to handle serious, complex and sensitive trials and appeals at every level of court. Her cases and advisory work involve two core themes:
- Criminal Responsibility and human rights.
- Corporate Responsibility and human rights.
Felicity holds a PhD, a Master of Laws in International Governance (LLM Int Gov), a Bachelor of Laws (LLB), and a Graduate Certificate in University Teaching and Learning (GCUTL). She is Professor of Legal Practice at Deakin University, Melbourne where she is Unit Chair in the undergraduate and JD programs teaching ‘Contemporary International Legal Challenges’ – including War Crimes, ‘Modern Slavery’, Terrorism and Art Law and she is involved in the clinical programs. She is also an Honorary Professor in the School of Health and Society at Salford University, researching the intersection between health, law and education, particularly in Autism, FGM and Child Rights.
Felicity specialises in International Criminal Law, Terrorism, Homicide and Modern Slavery Law as well as business and human rights issues. She has recently led in two major matters relating to investment in Myanmar. She is well known for leading the appeal R v Jogee [2016] UKSC 8 which corrected an error of law in complicity which was described by the BBC as a ‘genuine moment of legal history’. She has led teams of academics and practitioners in the ICTY on JCEIII liability, and in the ICC in the non-punishment principle. She has appeared as leading counsel in several jurisdictions including the UK Supreme Court, the Hong Kong Court of Final Appeal, and the Australian High Court. Experienced in death penalty cases and petitions for mercy.
Felicity has consulted for the UNODC and various NGOs. She has a long history of training professionals: This includes prosecutors in Rwanda on human trafficking, gender-based violence and corruption law as part of the Bridges to Justice Project; The Commonwealth Parliamentary Association Modern Slavery Project and the Bangladesh Judiciary Management Project. Her policy submissions have led to changes in the law on Modern Slavery, FGM and Reproductive Rights and currently support approaches to Afghanistan post withdrawal. She led a death penalty study for the Commission of Human Rights for the Philippines and previously led a four -year project on Women in Prison for Halsbury’s Law Exchange (part of the Lexis Nexis group) and a small Indigenous Justice and Exoneration Project.
Felicity is widely published in the fields of, women and law, technology and law and reforming justice systems. She is co-author of The Sexual Offences Handbook and contributes to Annotated Leading Cases of International Criminal Tribunals, the Research Handbook on Feminist Engagement in International Law, Human Trafficking and Modern Slavery Law and Practice and is the Editor of ANZSIL Perspective.
She was Lawyers Weekly Barrister of the Year 2020 and Solicitors Journal Legal Personality of the Year 2016 and has been recognised in the Legal 500 as a leading silk and as “Fearless and independent minded”. She has appeared in BAFTA and LOGIE nominated FGM documentaries and on all major news channels.
INTERNATIONAL, COMMONWEALTH and ECtHR
- Amicus Curiae Brief in ICTY Appeals Chamber 2022 on the application of the non-punishment principle to child soldiers / former child soldiers, leading a group of counsel and academics (oral and written observations)
- 2022 Advisory opinion on business and human rights in the context of corporate transfer / sale in Myanmar.
- In the matter of K 2020-22 – Instructed on international illegal logging in PNG.
- 2021 Memo on business and human rights in the context of stock exchange listing of construction investment in Myanmar.
- 2020 Advisory opinion to an NGO on the duty to prevent genocide.
- 2020 Advisory Opinion to the Human Rights Commission of the Philippines on death penalty legislation in ASEAN
- 2020 Advisory Opinion on application of UK domestic criminal law for leadership liability in international torture.
- 2020 Advisory Opinion on Victoria’s new assisted dying legislation.
- 2020: Advisory opinion on proposed presumptions as to consent legislation in Guernsey.
- R v Johnson 2019 Leading in an application to the European Court of Human Rights for permission to appeal in ‘joint enterprise’ murder
- Rowe v UK 2019 Leading in an application to the European Court of Human Rights for permission to appeal in ‘joint enterprise’ murder
- R v Henry 2019 Leading in an application to the European Court of Human Rights for permission to appeal in ‘joint enterprise’ murder
- Amicus Curiae Brief in ICTY Appeals Chamber 2018 on interpretation of JCEIII liability leading a group of counsel and academics (leave granted)
- In the matter of TOM 2018 – Advice on constitutional implications of an apparent preference in context of importation of high value goods subject to Biosecurity legislation.
- Chan Kam-shing (Hong Kong) 2016 – Leading appeal in alleged common purpose murder to Court of Final Appeal following Jogee
- R v P (Gibraltar) 2017 – Defence of sexual allegations involving advocacy relating to a 4-year-old child.
- In the matter of X (Monserrat) 2016 – Advising on statutory interpretation of s141 Penal Code.
TERRORISM AND FRAUD
- 2022 Multi-defendant alleged conspiracy to evade excise duty on large scale transnational organised operation
- 2021 Leading an Intervention in the UKSC on behalf of JUSTICE in R (on the application of Shamima Begum) v SSHD on revocation of citizenship and jurisdiction.
- Moukhaiber v R 2020 High Court of Australia and Victorian Court of Appeal – Appeal on issue of adding a state offence to a Commonwealth indictment.
- In the matter of women and child citizens in Syria 2020 – Advice on Federal challenge for citizens prevented from exercising right to re-enter.
- R v Mardon 2019 Leading for the defence (trial and appeal and confiscation proceedings) in multi-handed alleged Category A money laundering conspiracy involving issues of joint principalship and conspiracy and the application of Anwoir bases for liability.
- R v Abbas 2019 Victorian Supreme Court – Leading for the defence in high profile Christmas Day bomb plot.
- R v Galea 2019 Victorian Supreme Court – Leading for the defence in preparation and planning terrorist act.
- R v Moukhaiber 2019 Victoria Supreme Court – Leading for the defence in 1st trial in Australia for a completed terrorist act.
- R v Minogue 2019 Australian High Court – Leading Amicus Curiae brief in bombing appeal on implying the rule of law into the Australian Constitution.
INTERNATIONAL PUBLICATIONS
- Felicity Gerry, ‘Commentary’ on 4 cases in the ICCC in Andre Klip and Steven Freeland (eds), Annotated Leading Cases of International Criminal Tribunals (Intersentia, 2021).
- Eamon Kelly, Felicity Gerry, Sue Milne and Cate Read, ‘As lockdown lifts, it is time to repatriate women and children held in Syrian camps’ (2020) 14 ANZSIL Perspective 3
- Sue Milne, Cate Read, Eamonn Kelly and Felicity Gerry, ‘Allegiance is a Bond of Protection Not a Means through which to Deliver a Punitive Moral Judgment’ (2020) 16 ANZSIL Perspective 16.
- Azadah Raz Mohammad, Anna McNeil and Felicity Gerry, ‘Accountability for the perpetration of war crimes in Afghanistan’ (2020) 18 ANZIL Perspective 18.
- Felicity Gerry, Eva Buzo and Anna McNeil, ‘Genocide, the duty to protect and complicity: Is Australia sailing close to the wind in Myanmar?’ (2020) 17 ANZSIL Perspective 13.
- Felicity Gerry, ‘Commentary’ on Toma Fila disciplinary appeal in the ICTY in Andre Klip and Steven Freeland (eds), Annotated Leading Cases of International Criminal Tribunals (Intersentia, 2019) 261.
- Felicity Gerry, ‘Practitioner perspective: Feminism in court – practical solutions for tackling the wicked problem of women’s invisibility in criminal justice’ in Susan Harris Rimmer and Kate Ogg (eds), Research Handbook on The Future of Feminist Engagement with International Law (Edward Elgar Publishing Limited, 2019) 399.
- ICC Moot Court Manual 2012: Chapter on ICC Structure and Command Responsibility.
- Felicity Gerry et al, ‘Like David Hicks, the Australian ‘Shamima Begum’ Should Issue a Writ for Habeas Corpus’, Opinio Juris (online, 15 April 2021).
