BEING A LAWYER IS LIKE PAINTING: YOU CAN BE BRILLIANT AND NOT SELL A THING!
Ghimpele, 11th-17th of December 2008
She says about herself that she is a very shy person, but she manages to disguise it very well. Maybe she manages too well. In all her career she went through many interesting situations: from the request made by a detainee to the judge to remain in prison until the lawyer would come back from holiday to the insisting request of another man in prison to convince her lover not to leave him. But in order to track her down, Gianina Poroşnicu had to travel to Serbia.
She was also a journalist
How did you choose this profession? Did you inherit the oratorical talent from your family? Are there other people that influenced you?
You know, that’s something! When I was a child, I wanted to become a Romanian language teacher. Then, during high school I only wanted to study Law.
Especially when I applied, the Law Faculty was a great faculty and regarded as such. Imagine, there were 13 candidates for one place, not like now – plenty of places and not so many students. I also have to admit the fact that my father wanted me to succeed. I succeeded from my first try and then everything became destiny. Today, I cannot even imagine I could do something else.
How was your student period?
Not very pleasant, it was more of a searching time, I just couldn’t find my way. In my first year, I worked for a local newspaper, later I began to write a book and at graduation I was thinking of starting a new one. This is how I wandered through life. But I was never immobile. I searched for work; and I traveled quite a lot.
And what was your most pleasant experience in all the travels you made?
Hmm, in my travels I did a lot of things: I rode camels, elephants, I went to a picnic in the desert (I didn’t imagine until then that you could do such a thing, which is similar to our notion of going to a picnic in a park!).
Which part of the world is close to your heart?
I fell in love with Asia. Beijing, all China or India, are extraordinary countries. An interesting experience was in the jungle. To find yourself in the wilderness is truly fascinating.
Which one is more dangerous? The jungle we live in or the one you went through?
It is true that you cannot compare them. And we must be very cautious in everyday life. The jungle here cannot be compared with anything else.
NO to feelings in law practice
What qualities should a lawyer have?
His/her social instincts should be very strong in order to manage to preserve your place and persevere. It is imperatively necessary to possess that social intelligence and you must like people, with their faults and qualities. But most importantly is your flexibility and self-confidence.
The whole country heard about the grisly murder in Mancaş file. How did you approach this case? You were court-appointed lawyer for Alina Horeanu! What kind of person is she?
She is a very educated person, reads a lot and sure of herself. After she played main role in theater plays, she takes now advantage of the free time she has and wants to write and direct a play for the stage.
How do you feel as a human being when you know the freedom of a murderer is up to you?
I never had the feeling that everything is up to me. I think that, in the end, the judge is supreme sovereign over one’s destiny. The lawyer has an essential role and this is something that makes you responsible. Especially as a lawyer you are your own boss. Pressure is only psychological and it is not easy to cope.
I would also like to talk about principles versus feelings in this profession
A trial is like a war. Is you or them! We fight with procedure weapons. Feelings are forbidden at work. And principles must be there. So NO to feeling in law practice, there is simply no place for feelings in the profession.
Many people have no faith in Romanian justice anymore. How can this trust be re-established?
You have to know that this distrust exists not because of “collision” between man and system but more because press manages to “brain washes”. What is to be done? We have to regain our credibility. But this is a long process.
What plans do you have for the next year?
To do something I did not managed to do until now. For example, to reach the North Pole!
Interview by Elisabeth Ungureanu