Past cases and resources
On 27 November 2023, Zoe Whetham attended the Law Society of NSW’s prestigious and widely respected Specialist Accreditation award ceremony in Sydney, where she was awarded Specialist Accreditation in Criminal Law. Specialist Accreditation is held by less than 5% of the legal profession in New South Wales. The Specialist Accreditation Program has
Before a sentence hearing, a Court can order a Sentence Assessment Report (SAR). A Community Corrections Officer will write the report following an interview with you. A magistrate or judge will then consider the report during your sentence hearing. How do I know if I need a Sentence Assessment Report?
A Conditional Release Order (CRO) is a sentence imposed by a court requiring you to be of good behaviour. In addition, it requires you to appear at court if called upon to do so and to notify the court if you change address. Additional conditions can also be imposed. For
If your licence has been disqualified by a court in NSW, there are some options available to get your licence back. For example, by filing an appeal to the District Court. Alternatively, in some instances an application to remove the disqualification can be made. We have explored these options in
When an assault occurs in a public place, police will often lay a charge of affray instead of assault. This is significant, because the maximum penalty for affray is 10 years imprisonment, compared to 2 years for common assault. However, even though you might be guilty of affray, it is important to speak with
A “second or subsequent offence” means that the maximum penalties that apply to a new traffic charge will be more serious. However, the previous offence must have occurred within the last 5 years. In addition, the prior offence needs to be an “equivalent offence”, or a “major offence”. The provision
Approaching people to provide a character reference for your sentence can be a nerve-wracking process. Deciding who should, or who can, write a character reference for court can make the process even harder. Does the author need to have a high-standing in the community? There is a misconception that the
Our 23 year old client was charged with supplying 21 capsules of MDMA (3,4-Methylenedioxyamphetamine). It was their first criminal offence. They were extremely anxious about the charge and how it could impact their future. Our Strategy We helped to put our client at ease, by explaining the charge and court
What is an interlock order? An interlock order is a court order requiring you to not drive, unless you have an interlock device installed in your vehicle. An interlock device is a breath test. You must blow into the breath test and return a negative reading for alcohol before driving.