Specialist Criminal Lawyers
Contact our criminal lawyers to schedule an appointment with a qualified lawyer. We are located in the Hills, but travel all over the Sydney Metropolitan area, including the Hawkesbury and greater NSW. We’ll make sure you understand the process so you can make well-informed decisions. Our criminal lawyers provide consistent, comprehensive, and professional advice and preparation for each matter, helping our clients achieve the best results, both in and out of the courtroom.
Click on the links below for information on what the offence means, what the Police must prove, potential legal defences and maximum penalties.
Take some time to read through the material to understand your legal options better. If you have any questions about a specific matter, please reach out to us for assistance.
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Bail & Bail Applications
If you are arrested by the police and taken back to the Police Station, in most cases, you will be required to enter into bail conditions. A bail condition is a legally signed document that sets out a promise not to engage in particular conduct and to abide by certain conditions. Typical bail conditions include reporting to a police station or prohibiting contact with another person, i.e., the alleged victim.
In some cases, Police may refuse bail to a person and hold them for a period of time until the individual can appear before the court. Once at court, the court will need to determine bail. You must obtain sound legal advice before making a bail application, as you may only get one chance to do so. If refused, you will remain in custody until the matter is heard in court or a further bail application can be made. This can take some time, depending on scheduling and the type of charge.
Appeals
These are two types of appeals;
1. Severity Appeal
A Severity Appeal accepts the finding of guilt, but you believe that the sentence imposed was too harsh or severe.
These appeals need to be lodged within 28 days of the sentence date; however, there are some avenues to appeal up to 3 months later with the court’s permission.
The matter will then go to a higher court for determination, for instance, if you were at the Local Court, the District Court would hear your severity appeal.
2. Conviction Appeal (Commonly known as an all grounds Appeal)
A conviction appeal is an appeal where you are challenging the finding of guilt. Similarly, for a severity appeal, you have 28 days to appeal with the higher court, and up to 3 months with the court’s blessing.
Generally, the appeal is not a re-hearing of the evidence but rather a re-examination of the transcript of the original proceedings.