Courts we appear in
Parramatta Local Court
Parramatta is where we appear most often. It is one of the busiest Local Courts in New South Wales, and it sits inside a justice precinct with four separate courts within a few doors of each other on George Street. The first thing to get right is which building you are actually listed at, because turning up at the wrong one is the most common mistake people make here.
Alicia Catron 0407 171 626 or Michelle Simmons 0407 534 594. Our office is in Bella Vista, about 20 minutes from the precinct.
Check which building you are listed at
Four courts sit within a hundred metres of each other, all on George Street, all with different street numbers. Your court attendance notice states which one. Read it before you leave.
| Court | Address | What it deals with |
|---|---|---|
| Parramatta Local Court | 12 George Street | Summary offences, indictable matters dealt with summarily, bail, AVOs, committals, civil claims |
| Parramatta District Court | 6 George Street | Indictable trials before a judge and jury, sentences after committal, and appeals from the Local Court |
| Parramatta Children’s Court | 2 George Street | Criminal matters where the person was under 18, and care and protection proceedings |
| Drug Court of NSW | Level 2, 12 George Street | The specialist drug dependency program, in the same building as the Local Court |
The Federal Circuit and Family Court also has a registry at Parramatta, which is where parenting and property matters are heard. That is a separate building again and a separate jurisdiction. More on family law.
Getting there
| Address | 12 George Street, Parramatta NSW 2150, on the corner of George and Marsden Streets |
| Phone | 1300 679 272, the Local Court’s shared enquiry line |
| Registry hours | 9:00am to 1:00pm and 2:00pm to 4:30pm, Monday to Friday |
| Sitting days | Every weekday |
| Lists start | 9:30am |
- By train. Parramatta station is about a five to ten minute walk, on the T1 Western and T2 lines. The most reliable option by a distance
- By light rail. The Parramatta Light Rail has stops within walking distance
- By bus. Parramatta Interchange is at the station, with routes across greater western Sydney
- By ferry. The Parramatta wharf is about a fifteen minute walk
- By car. Street parking around the precinct is metered, limited and gone early. The commercial car parks in the Parramatta CBD, including Westfield, are the realistic option. Allow more time than you think, because a full morning in the CBD is not a quick park
Allow time for security screening on the way in as well. Daily lists are published the afternoon before on the NSW Courts website, so you can check your courtroom before you arrive. Interpreters can be arranged through the registry, but they have to be booked in advance rather than requested on the day.
What is dealt with at Parramatta Local Court
Parramatta hears the full range of Local Court work, and the lists are long. The matters we appear in there most often are:
- Criminal charges, from summary offences through to committal proceedings on indictable matters
- Drink driving and other traffic matters, including licence appeals and applications to remove a disqualification
- Domestic violence offences and apprehended violence orders, both applications and defended hearings
- Drug offences, including possession, deemed supply and commercial quantity matters
- Assault, stealing, fraud and break and enter
- Bail applications and mental health applications
- Civil claims up to $100,000, with a small claims division up to $20,000
Matters committed for trial or sentence go next door to the District Court at 6 George Street, which runs nine criminal trial courtrooms. An appeal against a Local Court decision is also heard there, and must be lodged within 28 days of sentence.
The Drug Court sits in the same building
The Drug Court of New South Wales operates from Level 2 of the Parramatta Court House. It is a specialist court for drug dependent offenders who would otherwise be facing a full time custodial sentence, and it runs an intensive supervised program under judicial oversight rather than imposing a sentence and moving on.
- You have to be dependent on prohibited drugs
- You have to be facing a sentence of full time imprisonment, and be willing to plead guilty
- You have to live in a participating local government area, which is what excludes most applicants
- Certain offences are excluded, including offences involving violence and sexual offences
- Referral comes from the Local Court, so it has to be raised there before your matter is finalised
A successful program can result in a sentence being substantially reduced or not served at all. It is demanding, closely supervised, and not a soft option, and a large proportion of participants do not complete it. But for the right person it is the difference between a custodial sentence and getting the underlying problem addressed.
More on the Drug Court. For matters where the Drug Court is not available, the MERIT program runs in the Local Court, is voluntary, does not require a guilty plea, and is worth raising early.
On the day
- Check the address on your notice before you leave. 12, 6 and 2 George Street are three different courts
- Arrive by 9:00am for a 9:30 list, and allow for security screening and parking. Parramatta’s lists are among the longest in the state
- Find your courtroom on the list posted at the door and give your name to the court officer so the court knows you are present
- Expect to wait. Matters are not called in the order printed. Do not plan anything else for the morning
- Dress conservatively. A collared shirt, neat trousers or a skirt. No slogans, hats or sunglasses
- Phone off, not on silent. No food or drink in the courtroom
- The first date is a mention, and the court will ask for your plea. Asking for an adjournment to get legal advice is common and usually granted. Take it rather than pleading on the spot
- If you are on bail, check whether a condition requires you to appear. Not appearing where required is a separate offence and a warrant can issue
On many matters a solicitor can appear for you and you do not need to attend at all, particularly at a mention. Tell us before the date rather than after.
How we can help
Our lawyers include former prosecutors, so we know how a brief is assembled and where the weaknesses in one usually sit. Parramatta is our home court and we are there most weeks.
Advice before you plead
Whether you are charged with the right offence, and whether the police fact sheet matches what actually happened, affects the outcome more than the plea does. Both are far harder to fix afterwards.
Charge negotiation
Dealing with the prosecution before a hearing date is set. Getting a charge reduced or a fact sheet amended is worth more than any speech on sentence.
Bail applications
Prepared rather than improvised, because in the Local Court you generally get one. Accommodation, conditions and supporting evidence take days to assemble.
Getting into a program
The Drug Court and MERIT both have to be raised before a matter is finalised, and both are missed far more often than they are refused.
Advice before a police interview
You are not obliged to participate in one. Most of the damage in a criminal matter is done before court, not in it, and we can attend a police station or advise by phone.
Appeals to the District Court
Heard at 6 George Street, and they must be lodged within 28 days of sentence. Advice on prospects matters before you lodge, because a severity appeal can result in a heavier sentence.
Listed at Parramatta?
Send us your court attendance notice and the police fact sheet. We will tell you which building you need to be at, what you are facing, and what your realistic options are.
Alicia Catron 0407 171 626 or Michelle Simmons 0407 534 594. Suite 3.13, 33 Lexington Drive, Bella Vista NSW 2153. All courts we appear in.