What is a Contest Mention? You may have heard your lawyer refer to your matter ‘proceeding to contest mention hearing’. A ‘summary contest’ is what we call a ‘trial’ in the Magistrates’ Court. The summary contest is heard by a...
Committal Mention Hearings A committal mention hearing is one of the first hearings you will need to attend if you have been charged with an indictable offence and there is a potential for your case to go to a jury...
Diversion – How Does it Work? Many jobs and volunteer positions require a national police check, meaning a criminal history can have a serious impact on your future prospects. While Victoria now has the Spent Conviction Scheme that will allow...
Mention Hearings at the Magistrates’ Court If you have been charged with a summary criminal offence, you will be summonsed, bailed or remanded to a Mention date at the Magistrates’ Court in Victoria. If you are charged with an indictable...
Making a Threat to Kill It can come as a shock to learn that words you communicate in person, via text or online can constitute an indictable offence worthy of a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison. This charge...
How to Prepare and Appear for a Webex Hearing at the Magistrates’ Court Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the Magistrates’ Court has been conducting court hearings remotely using Webex. With the easing of restrictions, there has been an increase in...
How to Make a Spent Conviction Application In March 2021, the Victorian Parliament passed the Spent Conviction Act 2021 (Vic). This Act will come into operation in 2021, although the exact date is not set at this point. The spent...
Standard Sentences: What They Mean and How They are Applied The Standard Sentence Scheme was introduced in Victoria by the Sentencing Amendment (Sentencing Standards) Act 2017 (Vic) in February 2018. This amendment essentially abolished the former Sentencing Amendment (Baseline Sentences)...
Spent Convictions – Finally Here The Victorian parliament recently passed the Spent Convictions Bill 2021 (Vic) (‘the Spent Convictions Bill’). The Spent Convictions Bill gives people who have been found guilty of criminal offences an opportunity to avoid that finding...
Consent in Sex Matters What is consent in a Sexual Assault case? The definition is surprisingly complex. If a person charged with sexual assault of an adult held a reasonable belief that the person who alleged they had been sexually...
