Emilios Kyrou
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Emilios Kyrou (; born 8 November 1959) is a Greek-Australian jurist and former lawyer. He is the inaugural President of the
Administrative Review Tribunal The Administrative Review Tribunal (ART) is an Australian tribunal that conducts independent merits review of administrative decisions made under Commonwealth laws of the Australian Government. The ART reviews decisions made by Australian Governme ...
and was the last President of its predecessor, the former
Administrative Appeals Tribunal The Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) was an Australian tribunal that conducted independent merits review of administrative decisions made under Commonwealth laws of the Australian Government. The AAT reviewed decisions made by Australian G ...
. He has served as a judge of the
Federal Court of Australia The Federal Court of Australia is an Australian superior court which has jurisdiction to deal with most civil disputes governed by federal law (with the exception of family law matters), along with some summary (less serious) and indictable (mo ...
since 8 June 2023. Between 2014 and 2023, Kyrou served as a judge of the Court of Appeal,
Supreme Court of Victoria The Supreme Court of Victoria is the highest court in the Australian state of Victoria. Founded in 1852, it is a superior court of common law and equity, with unlimited and inherent jurisdiction within the state. The Supreme Court compri ...
. Justice Kyrou was a judge in the Trial Division of that court between 2008 and 2014. Before his appointment to the Supreme Court of Victoria, Kyrou was a partner at Mallesons Stephen Jaques (now
King & Wood Mallesons King & Wood Mallesons (KWM) is the largest international commercial law firm based in the Asia–Pacific, Asia-Pacific. It has 26 offices and over 3,000 legal professionals across Australia, Hong Kong, China, Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore and the U ...
), where his areas of practice included insurance law, government law and dispute resolution. Kyrou is the author of several leading legal texts, a commentator on law reform and supporter of pro bono work. ----


Background

Emilios Kyrou was born in 1959 in the village of Sfikia,
Imathia Imathia ( ) is one of the regional units of Greece. It is part of the modern regions of Greece, region of Central Macedonia, within the geographic regions of Greece, geographic region of Macedonia (Greece), Macedonia. The capital of Imathia is the ...
,
Greece Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. Located on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to th ...
. He was 8 years of age when he arrived in Australia with his family in 1968. In 1982, he completed a
law degree A law degree is an academic degree conferred for studies in law. Some law degrees are professional degrees that are prerequisites or serve as preparation for legal careers. These generally include the Bachelor of Civil Law, Bachelor of Laws, an ...
at
University of Melbourne The University of Melbourne (colloquially known as Melbourne University) is a public university, public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in the state ...
, where he also served as an assistant editor of the ''
Melbourne University Law Review The ''Melbourne University Law Review'' is a triannual law journal published by a student group at Melbourne Law School covering all areas of law. It is one of the student-run law journals at the University of Melbourne and is widely regarded as ...
''. Kyrou graduated with first class honours and was awarded the 1982 Supreme Court Prize as the Melbourne Law School's top law graduate. He served articles at Corrs Pavey Whiting and Byrne (now Corrs Chambers Westgarth) and was admitted to practice in April 1984. In 1988, Kyrou was made a partner of Corrs. In 1990, Kyrou moved to Mallesons Stephen Jaques where he served as a partner for 17 years before he was appointed to the bench of the
Supreme Court of Victoria The Supreme Court of Victoria is the highest court in the Australian state of Victoria. Founded in 1852, it is a superior court of common law and equity, with unlimited and inherent jurisdiction within the state. The Supreme Court compri ...
. In 2012, Kyrou published a partial autobiography titled ''Call Me Emilios'' about his experiences as a child migrant. Kyrou is the only Greek-born judge to have been appointed to a superior court in Australia. He is also the second practising solicitor to be appointed directly as a justice of the Supreme Court of Victoria. ----


Awards and distinctions

Kyrou has won numerous awards and distinctions. Of particular note, the President of Greece awarded Justice Kyrou the Gold Cross of the Order of Merit for service to the Greek-Australian community in 2015. In the 2023 Australia Day Honours, Justice Kyrou was appointed an Officer (AO) of the Order of Australia "for distinguished service to the judiciary and to the law, to professional associations, and to the community".


See also

* Administrative Appeals Tribunal *
Judiciary of Australia The judiciary of Australia comprises judges who sit in federal courts and courts of the States and Territories of Australia. The High Court of Australia sits at the apex of the Australian court hierarchy as the ultimate court of appeal on matter ...
* List of Judges of the Supreme Court of Victoria * Victorian Bar Association


References

1.
Judge of the Federal Court of Australia
2. President of the Administrative Appeals Tribunal
About the AAT – Who we are
3. President of the Administrative Appeals Tribunal
Our ministers – Attorney-General’s portfolio
(ag.gov.au) 4.
Justice Emilios Kyrou appointed to Court of Appeal
Archived from the original on 8 August 2014. Retrieved 16 September 2015. 5.
Judges - History - Supreme Court of Victoria
(archive.org) . Archived from the original on 18 November 2012. Retrieved 22 November 2012. 6.

Mallesons Stephen Jaques. Archived from the original on 21 July 2008. Retrieved 25 September 2008. 7. Murray, Ann Maree (23 June 2022).
MLS Honour Board
'. Melbourne Law School. Retrieved 29 August 2022. 8. Weekly, Lawyers; Reporter (2 March 2012). '
Solicitor appointed to Supreme Court
''. www.lawyersweekly.com.au. Retrieved 29 August 2022. 9. Australia, National Library of
Call me Emilios
Retrieved 4 August 2023. 10. Economou, Alex (8 April 2015). '
Judge Emilios Kyrou receives highest honour
''. NEOS KOSMOS. Retrieved 1 February 2023. 11.
Australia Day 2023 Honours List
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kyrou, Emilios 1959 births Living people Greek emigrants to Australia Judges of the Federal Court of Australia Judges of the Supreme Court of Victoria University of Melbourne alumni