No matter what offence you have been charged with, the first step – and the most critical – is to seek legal advice. A professional lawyer will help you to understand the charges against you, your rights, and your options in court.

Of course, you can represent yourself, everyone has the right to do that, but it does help to have a lawyer on your side who can help you to navigate the system.

If English is not your first language, or you are a person with a disability or cognitive impairment, there are specialist services available to you.

While Courts have done a lot to make themselves more ‘accessible’ and less formal, the law itself and some of the court processes remain steeped in tradition. For example, the language used in the legal system can be complex if you are not familiar with it.

Preparing for your local court hearing

To prepare for the day itself, it’s important that you know the time, the date and the location of the court you are attending. This will be stated on your Court Attendance Notice (CAN).

During the Covid-19 pandemic, many Court processes, including some hearings, transitioned to technology which means that you may be able to have your case heard via video-link or teleconference where the facilities are available, and the Magistrate grants you ‘leave’ to appear via AVL/phone (‘leave’ is just another word for permission).  Be aware, for sentencing, you will almost always need to attend in person.

What if I can’t attend court?

If you cannot attend court on the day specified, at the time specified, you can apply to have this date changed and you must explain why. If you live a long way from the court that you are required to attend, then you can also ask to have the location of the mention/sentence changed – but pleas will be required on one of the early court dates, in the originating court.  A matter will generally not be moved to another court if you plead not guilty.  However if you plead guilty and want to have the forum for sentencing changed to a court closer to you, this can often be arranged.

It’s important to know that if you miss your court appearance then the Court has the power to make decisions in your absence, and you will forfeit the opportunity to explain your version of the events, which means the Court won’t be able to take into consideration any personal circumstances or other issues surrounding the incident you were allegedly involved with.

If however, the court does make a decision because you are absent, such as finding you guilty,  you do have options to appeal the decision.

Word of caution: missing court dates can result in further charges, and even a warrant for your arrest.  Whatever you do – if you have a court date, don’t simply ignore it.

What do I need to take to court?

If you have engaged a lawyer, then he/she will help you to prepare for court. If you’re self-representing, it’s a good idea to take notes with you so that you remember everything you want to say when it is your turn to speak.

You should take any documents relevant to your matter, including the CAN and the Police Fact sheet.

If you have other documents which may support your case, such as a medical certificate, or a letter from a psychologist, or proof that you have undertaken a safe driving program or drug/alcohol rehabilitation since the alleged offending occurred, or character references, then you need to take at least three copies of these documents. The original will be kept by the court, the police prosecutor will be given a copy, and you keep a copy.

If you’ve never been to court before, you could ask permission from the court to attend a court day on your own, to familiarise yourself with how the court operates. It’s important to note though, that some Local Courts in New South Wales still have Covid protocols in place, and visitors to court may be limited in some circumstances.

This post is informative only. It is not legal advice.

If you have a specific legal matter you’d like to discuss, please contact us.

We service NSW, but specifically the area from Coffs Harbour to Byron Bay, Ballina,

Mullumbimby and Tweed Heads regions on the Far North NSW Coast

The post Preparing for Local Court appeared first on Local Court Lawyers.

That said, there are still health precautions in place – these include:

Masks are mandatory

Where directed by a presiding magistrate, Local Court attendees must wear a mask. Any exceptions to this will be considered by the presiding magistrate.

If you’re unwell, make alternative arrangements

If you need to attend court, but cannot for health reasons, you can make an application to adjourn proceedings (find another future date for the matter to be heard) or ask for the matter to be heard by Audio-Visual technology (AVL).  Anytime you ask the local court to deviate from standard protocols of appearing in person, it’s advisable to get a medical certificate evidencing the health issue preventing your in-person appearance.  You don’t always need one, but it helps with some Magistrates and some types of matters.

Criminal matters

If you have to attend Local Court for a criminal matter you are expected to attend in-person unless an application has been made to adjourn the matter or for you to appear remotely.

This does not apply to weekend bail court arrangements in regional and rural areas.  For weekend bails, solicitors generally (not always, but generally) appear via AVL link, with the defendant generally also appearing via AVL from the police station in which they are being held.

Of course, no matter what your circumstances, you can always apply for alternative arrangements to be made. These may or may not be granted by the Court. Having matters dealt with via AVL appearance will also depend on the availability of equipment in the area (for example, Murwillumbah and Mullumbimby courts do not have AVL facilities).

About the Local Court

The Local Court has about 155 locations across New South Wales. It deals with the majority of cases (about 95%) that come before the courts including civil matters (involving amounts of money up to $100,000) and also the majority of criminal cases, which start in the Local Court and may eventually progress to the District or Supreme Court.

The Local Court also conducts what are called ‘committal proceedings’ which are hearings to determine whether indictable offences will be committed to the District and Supreme Courts, and if they are committed to the District or Supreme Courts, whether that is for trial or sentence.

There is no jury in any civil or criminal proceedings in the Local Court.

The Local Court also deals with applications for apprehended violence orders.

The Local Court is a very busy place, and as such, anyone who is expected to appear at the Local court is requested to be prompt in order to avoid delays which can significantly impact the timeline for delivering justice.  In some local courts, on busy ‘list days’, the court might have over 100+ matters on the court list – that’s 100+ matters the court must deal with in one way or another – whether that’s adjournments, sentencing, or other types of applications.

This post is informative only. It is not legal advice. If you have a specific legal matter you’d like to discuss, please contact us.

We service NSW, but specifically the area from Coffs Harbour to Byron Bay, Ballina, Mullumbimby and Tweed Heads regions on the Far North NSW Coast.

To learn more about The Local Court Lawyers, see our What We Do page.

You can also follow us on facebook

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CRO without a criminal conviction

A Judge or Magistrate will examine all elements of the offender and offending behaviour, to determine whether or not to convict a defendant, and also whether or not a CRO would meet the aims of sentencing.  The court will look at things like (and this list is not exhaustive, but things like):

• Has no previous criminal conviction.
• The offending is not that objectively serious.
• Whether a CRO assists in protecting the community from the offender committing further offences.
• Is the defendant a person of good character – which can be supported by providing the court with character references.
• Whether the defendant has a criminal history – in situations where the defendant has committed the same (or similar) offence in the recent past, non-conviction is unlikely to meet the aims of sentencing.
• The context in which the offending happened.
• Whether the defendant has taken steps or made attempts, since the offending but prior to court, to rehabilitate or rectify the situation, or get assistance (if, for example, there were drugs or alcohol involved at the time of offending).

CROs are one of the most lenient penalties available, meaning that they tend to be used for offences that are not objectively very serious, for example, some traffic offences.

Conditions applied to a CRO

CROs come with standard conditions including:

• The offender must not commit any other offence.
• The offender must attend court if required at any time during the term of the CRO.

The Judge or Magistrate has the power to impose additional conditions which may include (there are others….) such stipulations as:

• The offender must not visit specific people or places;.
• The offender must attend rehabilitation;
• The offender must refrain from consuming drugs and / or alcohol (or both).
• The offender must partake in a rehabilitation or treatment program for any identified issues such as addiction, anger or mental health.
• And others…..

If a Community Corrections Officer or an offender wants to change the conditions applied to the CRO, this can be done via an application to the court. The Judge or Magistrate can refuse the application or may agree to the changes if they are sensible and justified.

Breaching a CRO

If a person is placed on a CRO, and during the term of that CRO breaches it, they can be re-sentenced for this offence, plus get a new sentence for any fresh offences.  I’ll give you an example: if a person, with no criminal history, pleads guilty to being in possession of drugs (a couple of joints of cannabis), and the Magistrate decides to no convict them but place them on a CRO for 12 months.  If, during the 12 months, the same person is caught drink-driving, then they are in breach of the CRO.  The result is that a Magistrate may call-up the CRO and re-sentence the person for possess drugs and drink-driving, meaning a conviction is almost inevitable for both offences.

Additional information – Conditional Release Orders

The application of CROs is outlined in Section 9 Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act 1999. It states that CROs.

• Must not be made by the Local Court in the offender’s absence.
• Cannot be imposed together with a fine for the same offence.
• Cannot exceed a maximum period of 2 years.
• Can only be applied to a domestic violence / family violence offender if the order includes a condition for supervision and the court has seriously considered the safety of the victim/s.

If you need assistance with this, contact our office.

This post is informative only. It is not legal advice. If you have a specific legal matter you’d like to discuss, please contact us.

We service NSW, but specifically the area from Coffs Harbour to Byron Bay, Ballina, Mullumbimby and Tweed Heads regions on the Far North NSW Coast.

To learn more about The Local Court Lawyers, see our What We Do page.

You can also follow us on facebook

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The former NRL star was convicted late last year of two counts of sexual assault. After a jury found him guilty his legal team launched an appeal against his conviction.

Every person convicted of an offence has the right to appeal. Depending on the court in which the person is originally convicted determines where an appeal is heard.  This may be the District or Supreme Court – Court of Criminal Appeals, in NSW.  There are different types (or reasons) to appeal – such as appealing the severity of a sentence, or an appeal on the grounds of an error of law made by the original Magistrate or Judge.

In terms of appealing a sentence, which is very common in local court matters, the ‘severity’ appeal is lodged with the District Court, and a Judge is asked to determine if the penalty imposed by the Magistrate is too severe. Notably, the prosecution also has the right to appeal a sentence if it believes it is too lenient.

But back to the case at hand – Mr Hayne’s legal team won his appeal and the court (that originally found him guilty) now has to retry his case with a new jury. Mr Hayne’s has been released on bail, which allows him to be at liberty until the case is re heard.  His bail conditions (as is often the case) includes a number of strict conditions, including surrendering his passport and regular reporting to police.

So, what happens next?

The case will be heard again, from the beginning. A date will be set and a new jury will be selected, and evidence will be presented to the court.

It will be the third trial for Mr Hayne and his alleged victim. The first trial in early 2021 ended with a hung jury. The second trial, later in the same year, found him guilty of two counts of sexual assault.

After the second jury found him guilty he was sentenced to a maximum prison term of five years and nine months – he has served nine months.

Sentencing procedures outline that “where an offender is convicted of an offence after a retrial, he or she should not ordinarily receive a longer sentence or non-parole period than that imposed after the first trial, unless there is some significant circumstance to be taken into account.”

Sexual Assault

In New south Wales, sexual assault is outlined in section 61I of the NSW Crimes Act 1900. It states:

“Any person who has sexual intercourse with another person without the consent of the other person and who knows that the other person does not consent to the sexual intercourse is liable to imprisonment for 14 years.”

There are many sections of the NSW Crimes Act that deal with various sexual offences.

The issue of consent

Consent is a critical issue in sexual assault cases. While Mr Hayne has never denied that he had a sexual encounter with the complainant (alleged victim), he says the act was consensual, and that the injuries caused to the woman were accidental.

Last year, New South Wales passed new ‘affirmative consent’ laws. The new definition makes it clear that:

• a person does not consent to sexual activity unless they said or did something to communicate consent; and
• an accused person’s belief in consent will not be reasonable in the circumstances unless they said or did something to ascertain consent.

A person has the right to withdraw consent at any time during a sexual encounter.

The complainant has also lodged a civil claim against Mr Hayne, although this is unlikely to proceed in the NSW Supreme Court until the criminal matter has been finalised.

This post is informative only. It is not legal advice. If you have a specific legal matter you’d like to discuss, please contact us.

We service NSW, but specifically the area from Coffs Harbour to Byron Bay, Ballina, Mullumbimby and Tweed Heads regions on the Far North NSW Coast.

To learn more about The Local Court Lawyers, see our What We Do page.

You can also follow us on facebook

The post What does it mean to appeal a criminal conviction? appeared first on Local Court Lawyers.

A group of New South Wales high school parents are coming to terms with an even worse  scenario this week – the news that a teacher has allegedly been supplying prohibited drugs to their children.

The Science teacher has been arrested and charged with supplying drugs to students following a police investigation which started with a tip-off.

Police allege the teacher was contacting the students outside of school hours and supplying the drugs. She has been stood down from her position by the New South Wales Education Department, banned from entering the school grounds and prohibited from contacting any of the students at the school.

The teacher is yet to enter a plea in relation to the charges and the case will return to court next month.

Supplying a prohibited drug is a very serious criminal offence.

Section 25 of the The Drugs Misuse and Trafficking ACt (1985) states:

(1) A person who supplies, or who knowingly takes part in the supply of, a prohibited drug is guilty of an offence.

(1A) A person of or above the age of 18 years who supplies, or who knowingly takes part in the supply of, a prohibited drug (other than cannabis leaf) to a person under the age of 16 years is guilty of an offence.

The penalty for supplying or knowingly taking part in the supply of prohibited drugs carries a penalty of 10 years imprisonment and/or 2000 penalty units ($110each) where the offence involves less than a commercial quantity and relates to cannabis plant/leaf.

In other cases not relating to cannabis plant/leaf, the penalty is 15 years and/or 2000 penalty units (one penalty unit is currently $110).

However the penalties for drug supply also depend upon other factors including:

• the type of drug involved
• the quantity or amount of the drug involved
• whether the case is heard in a Local Court or District Court

What is a prohibited drug?

The most common prohibited drugs are: Cannabis, MDMA or ecstasy, cocaine, Amphetamine, Methylamphetamine, Heroin, LSD, and GHB.  There is a full list of prohibited drugs in Schedule 1 of the Drug Misuse and Trafficking Act.

‘Ongoing supply’ charges in New South Wales

In New South Wales there is also a specific offence relating to criminal activity involved in ‘ongoing supply.’

Section 25A of the Drug Misuse and Trafficking Act outlines the offence Of Supplying Prohibited Drugs On An Ongoing Basis. It states:

A person who, on 3 or more separate occasions during any period of 30 consecutive days, supplies a prohibited drug (other than cannabis) for financial or material reward is guilty of an offence. The maximum penalty for this offence is  3,500 penalty units ($110 each) or imprisonment for 20 years, or both.

This post is informative only. It is not legal advice. If you have a specific legal matter you’d like to discuss, please contact us.

We service NSW, but specifically the area from Coffs Harbour to Byron Bay, Ballina, Mullumbimby and Tweed Heads regions on the Far North NSW Coast.

To learn more about The Local Court Lawyers, see our What We Do page.

You can also follow us on facebook

The post Supplying a prohibited drug in New South Wales appeared first on Local Court Lawyers.

Then, once you have a criminal conviction, you need to declare it in many future instances in your life, such as, for example, applying for a job, or travelling overseas. Failing to do so can be seen as a reflection of a ‘dishonest’ character.

If you are applying for a job with the government, or in the health, legal or childcare sectors, a police check will most likely be required, irrespective of the role.

If you do have a conviction, a good idea to find out if a criminal check will be done (these are becoming increasingly common in all businesses and organisations) and if so, to disclose any conviction to your prospective employer as soon as possible, up front.

Travelling overseas

If you want to travel, many countries require you to disclose your conviction on arrival at customs before you are allowed to enter. In some cases, you will need to disclose it prior to that,  in order to obtain a visa for holiday, work, or relocation purposes and it can affect your chances of being allowed entry.

Future charges

If you have a criminal record and you are charged with subsequent offences, your previous conviction record will be considered by the court. Not only is it unlikely that you would be able to seek a non-conviction order more than once, if the subsequent offences are similar in nature to the already convicted offence, it can potentially result in a more serious penalty.

Gun licence

To own a gun in Australia, you must have a gun licence. So, if at any time you want to obtain a gun licence, your conviction will be considered. Depending on the timing and the seriousness of the conviction your licence application may be denied.

Impact on adoption and child custody

Having a criminal record can also affect your chances of adopting children, fostering children, and in some cases, depending on the nature of the offence, affect a parent’s ability to gain custody of children in family disputes.

Can a criminal conviction be avoided?

Yes, it is possible to avoid a conviction in some circumstances. This can be done by seeking a section 10 dismissal or a conditional release order, which allows you to plead guilty to a criminal offence but still avoid a criminal conviction. To have the best chance at the court considering these options, it’s best to have a criminal lawyer to represent you in the local court.

A non-conviction order may come with a good behaviour bond for up to two years, and courts have the power not to record a conviction if the offence is considered to be relatively minor.

Non-conviction orders can be awarded in a variety of cases, however being successful in obtaining a non-conviction order will also depend on a number of additional factors such as whether you have a prior record, if it is a first offence, you are of good character, and you are considered to be unlikely to commit the offence again.

Other Orders, for a convicted offender, in Community Corrections Orders (“CCO”) and Intensive Corrections Orders (“ICO”).  These orders generally have additional conditions attached, such as, by way of a few examples only, community service work, home detention, attend rehab or counselling, obey the reasonable directions of your caseworker at Community Corrections.

ICO’s are an alternative to full-time custody and are considered very serious.

This post is informative only. It is not legal advice. If you have a specific legal matter you’d like to discuss, please contact us. 

If you have a specific legal matter you’d like to discuss, please contact us. We service the area from Coffs Harbour to Byron Bay, Ballina and Tweed Heads regions on the Far North NSW Coast.

To learn more about The Local Court Lawyers, see our What We Do page.

The post The long term effects of a criminal conviction appeared first on Local Court Lawyers.

According to the report, out of the 16,393 private law practices registered across Australia, sole practitioners make up 82 per cent.

One of the key drivers behind this upward trend is the increasing number of females entering the legal profession. Figures published in June this year show there are now 44,581 women in law in Australia and 39,052 men. Over the past decade, two-thirds (67 per cent) of those entering the profession have been women, while just 26 per cent of those becoming lawyers have been men.

For many women, the traditional career path in a mid-size or large law firm, has been pretty demanding, making it very difficult to balance career and family. Firms are changing their out-dated structures, but for many, rising to the top still requires long hours and heavy caseloads.

And it’s for this reason predominantly, that women are starting their own practices in droves — because working by themselves gives them much more flexibility to manage their own hours.

Regional coastal and rural areas benefit

It should be noted that regional Australia has really benefited from the rise in solo practitioners too, with talented lawyers embarking on sea-changes and tree-changes, moving out of the big cities and bringing their expertise with them.

Technology, of course, makes this all possible. Lawyers can still stay in touch with peer groups if they want to peer review cases, or simply obtain a second opinion. A lot of seminars and webinars which keep practitioners up to date with changes to the law, or other information that’s important to the profession as a whole, are also available online.

For clients seeking legal advice, there are significant advantages of this increase in solo practitioners.

Firstly, it makes access to legal advice easier. Whether clients are looking for an employment lawyer, a family lawyer, a criminal lawyer or a specialist local court lawyer to represent them in court, clients can easily search the internet and find what they need quickly and easily.

Secondly, generally speaking, the person who answers the phone when you make an initial inquiry will be the lawyer actually working on the case, which speeds up the process in many instances too (where there isn’t a reliance on other factors, such as dates set by the courts). With fewer people involved in the workflow process, clients benefit from a streamlined service.

More choices when it comes to getting the right legal advice

The final benefit for clients is financial. Because these small practices are cheaper to run than the big firms (they have lower overheads), savings can be passed onto clients via way of lower fees. Increasing competition means that service fees become standardised across practice areas.

In many cases, lawyers are beginning to offer fixed fees for straight forward legal matters, but they’re also in a better position to negotiate if they choose to and the circumstances require it.

It has to be said that although cost shouldn’t be a factor when you’re accessing specialist advice of any kind (medical, technical, legal) most lawyers are aware that it is a consideration for many who find themselves inadvertently in trouble with the law or suddenly needing legal advice.

While it is possible to represent yourself in local court, and there is a proliferation of resources available for free on the internet including template contracts and agreements, the right legal advice for your personal circumstances should never be under-rated.

There are plenty of people who have tried to go it alone, only to end up realising they did need legal advice after all.

The law, no matter what area: commercial, criminal, copyright etc – is incredibly complex – to turn your back on professional knowledge and expertise can be to do so at your peril.

This post is informative only. It is not legal advice. If you have a specific legal matter you’d like to discuss, please contact us. 

If you have a specific legal matter you’d like to discuss, please contact us. We service the area from Coffs Harbour to Byron Bay, Ballina and Tweed Heads regions on the Far North NSW Coast. We also represent children and juveniles in the Children’s Court as well.

To learn more about The Local Court Lawyers, see our What We Do page.

The post The rise of solo legal practitioners … and what that means for clients. appeared first on Local Court Lawyers.

Coffs Harbour, along with local Courts at Albury, the Central West, Illawarra, and Wagga Wagga, as well as the State Coroner’s Court and Sydney’s Downing Centre will be allocated a share of the funding.

The Local Court is the court of general access. Historically, the local court was known as the Court of Petty Sessions, although today local courts have a broad jurisdiction to deal with many different matters which are both criminal and civil in nature. In the local court, matters are heard by a single Magistrate, there is no jury.

New South Wales Local Courts

There are more than 160 branches of the local court across the state, dealing with more than 94 per cent of all criminal prosecutions, as well as some family matters, civil cases, and domestic and family violence matters.

In recent years, the strain on the local court system has been tremendous. There are more cases being heard in the local courts, and cases are more complex. This has resulted in delays, which over time, have created a significant backlog of cases. The ‘pause’ to some cases and changes to other court proceedings during Covid-19 has only added to this backlog.

The New South Wales Government has been under pressure for some years to provide additional resources for local courts because justice delayed is justice denied. In fact only a few years ago, some regional courts were considering reducing sitting hours in consideration for the health and wellbeing of Magistrates who preside over many cases each day.

Delays in the system also have the potential to add to  financial and personal stress, a longer period of disharmony or disruption in people’s lives and can have a variety of other emotional impacts.

So the new Magistrates and additional funding being rolled out this financial year, is good news. It will go some way towards easing the strain on the  judiciary and court staff. Additional resources will also significantly impact anyone who comes into contact with the course, enabling court matters to be resolved in a more efficient and timely way.

This post is informative only. It is not legal advice.  If you need advice about a local court matter, please contact us.

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(the following is relevant only to the NSW lockdown in place for all of NSW, during August 2021, and which may be extended beyond August)

Courts in Far North New South Wales, and across the entire state have changed the way they are operating during the Covid-19 pandemic to ensure that the wheels of justice can keep turning, without risking the spread of the virus in public places.

One of the biggest changes to the local courts in the area from Coffs Harbour to Tweed Heads is that many matters are being dealt with electronically – via telephone and email or video link when the technology is available.

If you have a matter for mention listed before the local court, then you need to contact your lawyer, or the court itself to understand what’s happening. Individual cases will have different circumstances, although, in most instances you will not need to appear at local court  in person. However, you will still be required to participate in the process by providing written documentation, or via telephone or video-link.

Most local court matters and mentions are being dealt with electronically

A mention is a procedural court date to determine the status of the case which may involve adjourning the matter for another mention and making orders pending that future date, or setting it down for a fresh hearing date.

The participants in the proceedings – including the defendant, defence lawyer, prosecution and witnesses – are not required to attend court on the currently listed court date.

Parties are required to prepare and send an email to the court by 3pm on the day before the listed court date advising of the status of the case and the orders that are sought.

How do I contact the court?

Contacting your local court can be done in writing or by phone. The email address and telephone number for local courts are listed here. And you should also provide your most up to date contact information including a phone number and email address to facilitate communication with the court.

Entering a plea

There are a number of standard forms to help defendants with this process, but it is recommended that you seek legal advice before filling in these forms and submitting them.

Guilty plea

If you have pleaded guilty to a charge, these matters may be dealt with, without you having to appear in court in person – it depends on the charge(s) and a few other circumstances, as to whether the court will deal with the matter in your absence or will adjourn it to another date, or you will be expected to attend in person.  We suggest that you either get legal advice or call the court registry.

Not guilty plea

If you have pleaded not guilty, then these matters (because they usually require witnesses and sometimes also ‘support’ people for the defendant when needed) are generally not proceeding at this time, therefore participants are generally not required to attend court. If you find yourself in these circumstances then you or your  legal representative need to contact the court prior to the scheduled date of your hearing. Current hearing schedules remain in place, although these matters will likely be postponed and you need to work with the court to set a new date.

However, if parties wish for such a matter to proceed (and do not require the attendance of any witnesses) an application to proceed with consent of all parties may be made to the court.

Sentencing

Sentencing proceedings will continue to occur (only where possible) – if you are due to be sentenced in a matter, we suggest you contact the court registry or get some legal advice before the court date.

The traffic Offenders’ Programme in New South Wales

If you have been directed to complete the Traffic Offender Intervention Program (TOIP) for driving offences  you need to be aware that it is not being delivered face-to-face during this time, although it can be completed online.

Masks

While courts aim to minimise the number of people attending at this time, if you do need to go to court, then you must wear a mask at all times inside the building and scan in with QR codes.

Delays are inevitable.

The uncertainty around the pandemic and the end of lockdowns and restrictions on movement has created some delays within the local courts. This cannot be helped at this time and it is being experienced by courts all over Australia. The good news is that in its most recent budget, the NSW State Government approved more funding and additional magistrates to assist the local courts deal with backlogs.

If you have any questions, you can contact us.

This post is informative only. It is not legal advice.  If you have a specific legal matter you’d like to discuss, or you’re not sure what this means for your case, please contact us.

The post Court in Covid appeared first on Local Court Lawyers.

Local Court Lawyers regularly lodge appeals against licence suspensions for our clients from Coffs Harbour to Casino to Tweed Heads and everywhere in between.

Whilst an appeal can be a straightforward process, submissions and/or grounds for that appeal differ depending on the type of suspension – whether you’ve been suspended by Transport for NSW (formerly RMS) or the Police with a Notice of Suspension and whether that suspension is due to demerit points, speeding or drink driving.

It is imperative, therefore, that the grounds for appeal are strategic, candid and address the specific “test” for appeal depending on the type of suspension.  These initial grounds are drafted into an Application to the Local Court for consideration and will be read by the Magistrate prior to hearing about the particulars of your case, that is, the oral submissions made to the Magistrate on the day your matter is listed before the Court.  These submissions can either be made by yourself (should you chose to represent yourself) or by us, lawyers with vast experience and proven track record before our Local Court Magistrates.

There are no guarantees – Appeals can be denied altogether, or suspensions can possibly be reduced and ultimately, the Magistrate also has the authority to totally revoke any suspension.

If your grounds for appeal, including the submissions made before the Magistrate on the day you are to appear at court are insufficient, your appeal will likely fail.  It is also worth noting that should your appeal fail, Transport NSW can apply to the court for you to pay their costs, as well (which is usually between $100-$300).  Be aware: When you appeal to the local court, the decision of the Magistrate is final – you cannot appeal any further, so make sure you put your best foot forward from the start.

With a solid track record of successful Applications, Local Court Lawyers can advise you of appeal requirements, how to position yourself for the best outcome and make those specific submissions to the court on your behalf.

If you would like us to take a look at your case, and advise as to your chances of success contact us now.

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