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...
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...
Can You Stop Criminal Charges Before They Happen? “If I’m charged, I’ll lose everything.” Is there a clause in your employment contract that requires you to report any contact with police even if you have not been found guilty of...
Evidence in Family Violence Intervention Orders In criminal law proceedings, complex rules of evidence can be the cause of lengthy legal argument. In contrast, in contested Family Violence Intervention Order Applications, Section 65 of the Family Violence Protect Act (‘the...
Committal Mentions – A Detailed Look at Procedure and Preparation If you have been charged with a more serious criminal offence, the process is different to the less serious matters in the summary stream that stay in the Magistrates’ Court....
The Basics of Going to Court for a Family Violence Intervention Order The current COVID-19 lockdown restrictions may be exposing cracks and widening divisions in family relationships and household dynamics that may have long existed under the surface. Loss of...
Failing to Prepare is Preparing to Fail – How to Successfully Manage Criminal Charges Being charged with criminal offending is extremely stressful. A natural reaction to being charged is to become overwhelmed and refuse to confront the reality of a...
Written by Annamiek Van Loon, Lawyer, Doogue + George Defence Lawyers The short answer to the question “Can I tell my lawyer everything?”: Yes. The long answer: information you give your solicitor, what we call client instructions, is likely to...
Written by Amelia Ramsay, Associate, Doogue + George Defence Lawyers Regardless of how it happens, you have a right to ask to speak to a lawyer before a police interview proceeds. Interview Dos and Don’ts There are a number of...
