Prominent Darwin criminal lawyer Matthew Hubber has been handed a good behaviour bond after admitting to buying cocaine from Alexander Hatzivalsamis.
Hubber pleaded guilty in the Darwin Local Court to two counts of possessing less than a traffickable quantity of a schedule one dangerous drug in a public place.
The court heard Hubber exchanged a series of phone calls and text messages with Hatzivalsamis on two separate occasions in 2016.
Hubber admitted to then buying one gram of cocaine from Hatzivalsamis at the Darwin Convention Centre carpark in October and again at the Casuarina Sports Club carpark in November.
Organised crime detectives investigating the distribution of cocaine in Darwin arrested Hatzivalsamis in February this year, the court heard.
After he was arrested and charged, Hatzivalsamis gave Hubber's name as one of his customers, prosecutor Hamish Riley said.
"After seeking advice from his lawyer, Hatzivalsamis participated in a formal record of interview with detectives where he made full admissions to supplying cocaine to persons in the Darwin region between August 2016 and January 2017," Mr Riley said.
Police approached Hubber on July 6, when he was issued with a notice to appear in court.
Hubber's wife, Beth Wild, who is lawyer at the Northern Australia Aboriginal Legal Justice Agency, and Hubber's father-in-law, former Director of Public Prosecutions in the Northern Territory, Rex Wild QC, supported Hubber in court.
Through Hubber's defence lawyer, Jon Tippett QC, Mr Wild attested that Hubber was a "decent, reliable, honest and honourable young man".
Mr Tippett continued that since Hubber had married Mr Wild's daughter, the criminal lawyer "has been of excellent behaviour and the news of these charges came as a great shock to him [Mr Wild]".
Character references were also provided to the court from James Paspaley and executive director of the Department of the Chief Minister, Hayley Richards.
Mr Tippett told the court Hubber was a "well-known and respected member of the legal community" and an "outstanding sportsman".
Judge Sarah McNamara said she accepted "this kind of offending is extremely out of character".
"As a legal practitioner you really ought to know better ... but I do sentence you today as a member of the public," she said.
She took into account the offence being the lowest bracket of offending and accepted Hubber's "genuine remorse".
"I accept this matter itself will attract attention and that will be a sort of punishment," she said.
Judge McNamara added the "mortification" and "embarrassment" would "significantly deter you from reoffending in the future".
A conviction was not recorded and Hubber was sentenced to a 12-month good behaviour bond set at $1,000.
The court heard the matter was under consideration by the NT Law Society.
