Criminal law in NSW
Criminal lawyers in New South Wales
Our team includes former prosecutors and former police. We have built these cases from the other side, which is why we know where a brief is weakest and what a magistrate actually responds to.
If police want to interview you, call before you answer anything
You are not obliged to participate in a police interview. Once you have given a version it cannot be taken back, and most of the damage in criminal matters is done in the first few hours, not in court. Call us on 0407 171 626 (Alicia) or 0407 534 594 (Michelle), any hour.
Catron Simmons Lawyers appear in criminal matters in Local, District and Supreme Courts across New South Wales, from summary offences through to strictly indictable charges.
Being charged is frightening and the process is opaque, which is a bad combination. This page sets out what happens from arrest to sentence, what your real options are at each stage, and where a decision you make early quietly determines the outcome months later. Find your charge below, or call and we will tell you where you stand.
Start here
Find your charge
Each page sets out what the offence means, what the police must prove, the defences that actually run, and the maximum penalties.
Violence and domestic related offences
Domestic violence offences →
Stalking and intimidation →
Contravening an AVO →
Affray, riot and violent disorder →
Defending an AVO →
Property and dishonesty
Break, enter and steal →
Destroying or damaging property →
Throwing objects at vehicles →
Drugs, weapons and public order
Firearms and weapons, including custody of a knife →
Summary offences, offensive conduct and language →
Consorting →
Using a carriage service to menace or harass →
Sexual offences →
Traffic offences that are criminal charges
Before anything else
At the police station
Almost every criminal matter is shaped in the police station, before a lawyer is anywhere near it. Three things are worth knowing.
Name and address
Where police have a lawful reason to ask, you must provide your name and address. Refusing that is itself an offence.
An interview
You are generally not obliged to answer questions or take part in a recorded interview. “No comment” is a complete answer, and it is very often the right one.
The special caution
For serious indictable offences, if police give you a special caution while your lawyer is present and you fail to mention something you later rely on at trial, a court may be permitted to draw an unfavourable inference. This is why the advice needs to be specific to your matter, not general.
You are entitled to speak to a lawyer before deciding, and to have that conversation privately. Ask for it. Police are not obliged to prompt you, and the interview will proceed without a lawyer if you do not raise it.
You may only get one chance
Bail and bail applications
If you are arrested and taken to a police station, police will usually decide bail first. They may release you with conditions, such as reporting to a station, a curfew, or not contacting a particular person. If police refuse bail, you are held until you can be brought before a court.
How a court decides
Under the Bail Act 2013 the court asks whether there is an unacceptable risk that you would fail to appear, commit a serious offence, endanger someone, or interfere with witnesses or evidence. If a risk is identified, the next question is whether conditions could reduce it to an acceptable level. Realistic, well drafted conditions are often what carries an application.
Show cause offences
For a defined list of more serious offences, the starting position is reversed. You must first show cause why your detention is not justified, and only then does the court turn to the unacceptable risk question. Knowing which category your charge falls into changes how the application is prepared entirely.
Why the first application matters so much
In the Local Court you generally get one bail application. A further application will not be heard unless something has changed, such as new information that was not available, a material change in circumstances, or you were unrepresented the first time. A poorly prepared first application does not just fail, it can close the door. Get advice before it is made, not after.
Preparation is what wins these. That means proposed conditions, a surety or acceptable person, an address that will withstand scrutiny, employment or treatment evidence, and answers ready for the specific risks the prosecution will raise.
Step by step
I have a Court Attendance Notice. What now?
A Court Attendance Notice, or CAN, is the document that starts the prosecution. There are four kinds and the difference tells you something about your situation.
Court Attendance Notice
Posted to you, typically following a court election on a penalty notice or a criminal infringement notice.
Field CAN
Handed to you at the time of the incident. No bail conditions attached.
Future CAN
Served after the event, by post or in person, often weeks later. No bail conditions attached.
Bail CAN
Given at the police station after a period in custody. It carries bail conditions you must sign to be released, and must then comply with until the matter is finalised.
Check the date and the court
The notice states where and when you must appear. Do not miss it. A warrant can issue for non-appearance, and on a bail CAN, non-appearance is a separate offence.
Read the charge, not the summary
The section number tells you what you are actually facing, whether it is summary or indictable, and which court will ultimately deal with it. Charges that sound similar can differ by years.
Comply with every bail condition exactly
Breaching bail is treated seriously and can lead to bail being revoked. If a condition is unworkable, apply to vary it rather than breaching it.
Get advice before you enter a plea
The first date is a mention and the court will ask for your plea. Asking for an adjournment to obtain legal advice is common and usually granted. Take it.
Your court date
What to expect at court
On the day
Local Court lists usually start at 9:30am. Arrive early, find your courtroom on the list at the door, and give your name to the court officer so the court knows you are present. Expect to wait, because matters are not called in the order printed. Court locations and contact details are on the NSW Courts website.
Courtroom etiquette
- Switch your phone off, not to silent
- No eating, drinking or chewing gum in the courtroom
- Keep talking to a minimum, and step outside if you need to have a conversation
- Bow to the coat of arms above the magistrate or judge as you enter and leave
- Stand when the magistrate or judge enters or leaves, and when your matter is called
What to wear
Conservative and well presented. A collared shirt, and neat trousers or a skirt. Nothing with slogans or images, no hats, no sunglasses. It costs nothing and it signals that you are treating the matter seriously.
Will my matter finish on the first date?
On a plea of guilty, most minor matters are finalised that day, although the court may order a report from Community Corrections so it understands your background and the sentencing options available.
On a plea of not guilty, the court orders the police brief to be served and lists the matter again to confirm your plea, then sets it down for hearing. On the hearing date the prosecution calls its witnesses, the evidence is heard, and the magistrate decides. If the matter is committed to the District or Supreme Court, a trial or sentence date is set there.
Worth knowing
Do I need a lawyer if I am pleading guilty?
This is the most common misunderstanding in criminal law. Pleading guilty is not the end of the matter, it is the beginning of the part that decides your penalty.
Are you charged with the right offence?
Charges are frequently laid at a higher level than the evidence supports. Negotiating a charge down, or having one withdrawn on a plea to another, changes the maximum penalty and often the court you end up in.
Does the fact sheet match what happened?
The court sentences on the agreed facts. Once tendered they are extremely difficult to unwind, and the first draft routinely overstates the offending. This is where a great deal of quiet damage is done.
Is the case for you actually being put?
A court that hears only the police version and your record has nothing to work with. References, a letter of apology, counselling or treatment evidence and your personal circumstances are what move a sentence.
Written notice of pleading
You can plead guilty in writing without attending, and we usually advise against it. The magistrate has only the fact sheet and your record, and the penalty is typically heavier as a result.
The court also gives a discount for a plea entered early, so if you are going to plead guilty, the timing matters. If cost is the obstacle, Legal Aid NSW may be able to assist, and community legal centres offer free advice sessions without a means test.
Sentencing
What a court can order
Sentencing is governed by the Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act 1999. The available orders, from least to most serious:
- Section 10(1)(a) dismissal. Guilty, but the charge is dismissed. No conviction and no penalty. The matter is finalised as you leave.
- Conditional Release Order without conviction. A bond of up to two years with no conviction recorded, supervised or unsupervised. This is what people usually mean when they say “a section 10”.
- Conviction with no other penalty. Under section 10A a conviction is recorded but no further penalty follows.
- Fine. Can be combined with a bond. Payable within 28 days, with extensions and payment plans available from the registry. Unpaid fines lead to an enforcement order, which can suspend your licence and registration.
- Conditional Release Order with conviction. A bond following a conviction, with conditions such as supervision, abstinence, treatment, curfews or non-association.
- Community Correction Order. The more serious bond, used where a fine or a CRO is not enough. Up to three years, and may include community service, curfews, supervision, place restriction or non-association conditions.
- Intensive Correction Order. A sentence of imprisonment served in the community under strict supervision, with conditions such as home detention, electronic monitoring, curfews or community service. It is not available for a range of offences, including certain violent, sexual and child related offences. Breaches are dealt with by the State Parole Authority rather than the court, and often mean serving the balance in custody.
- Full time imprisonment. The last resort, and the court must be satisfied no other penalty is appropriate.
What a conviction actually means
A conviction is a formal record of guilt. It goes on your criminal record and can affect employment, professional registration, working with children checks, visas and travel, particularly to the United States. For many clients, avoiding a conviction is worth far more than reducing a fine, and it is often achievable in a well prepared plea.
If it went badly
Appeals
A decision of the Local Court can generally be appealed to the District Court. There are two kinds, and the deadline is the same for both.
Severity appeal
You accept the finding of guilt but say the sentence was too harsh. The District Court can reduce it, confirm it, or in some circumstances increase it, so advice on prospects matters before you lodge.
Conviction appeal
You challenge the finding of guilt itself. This is generally conducted on the transcript of the original proceedings rather than as a fresh hearing, so what was said at first instance is what you are stuck with.
Both must be lodged within 28 days of the sentence date. Beyond that you need the court’s leave, available up to three months. After three months the door is effectively closed, so if you are unhappy with an outcome, get advice quickly rather than thinking it over.
Why Catron Simmons
Why clients choose us
We have been on the other side
Former prosecutors and former police. We know how a brief is assembled, which means we know what is missing from it and what will not survive cross examination.
40+ years’ combined experience
Local, District and Supreme Court matters across New South Wales, from summary offences to strictly indictable charges. See the courts we appear in.
Charge negotiation, not just mitigation
Getting the charge and the facts right is worth more than any speech on sentence. It is the first place we look and the part most often skipped.
Contactable when it matters
Arrests do not happen in business hours. We are a boutique firm, you talk to the solicitor who will appear for you, and we are contactable 24/7.
Common questions
Criminal charges in NSW: your questions answered
Do I have to answer police questions?
You must give your name and address where police have a lawful reason to ask. Beyond that you are generally not obliged to answer questions or participate in a recorded interview. There is an important exception for serious indictable offences, where a special caution given in the presence of your lawyer can allow a court to draw an unfavourable inference from something you failed to mention. Get advice specific to your matter before deciding.
Will I get bail?
It depends on whether the court finds an unacceptable risk that you would fail to appear, commit a serious offence, endanger someone or interfere with evidence, and whether conditions can reduce that risk. For a defined list of serious offences you must first show cause why detention is not justified. In the Local Court you generally get one application, so preparation before it is made is critical.
Will I get a criminal record?
Only if a conviction is recorded. A section 10(1)(a) dismissal or a Conditional Release Order without conviction means no conviction is recorded. Where a conviction is recorded it appears on your criminal record and can affect employment, professional registration, working with children checks, visas and travel.
Should I plead guilty to get it over with?
Not before you have had advice. The questions are whether you are charged with the right offence, whether the fact sheet is accurate, and whether the case for you is being put properly. All three affect the penalty more than the plea itself does. There is a discount for pleading early, so the timing matters too.
Can I appeal if I am unhappy with the outcome?
Generally yes, to the District Court, within 28 days of the sentence date. You can appeal the severity of the sentence, the finding of guilt, or both. Beyond 28 days you need the court’s leave, available up to three months, after which the opportunity is effectively gone.
Do I have to attend court myself?
On many matters a solicitor can appear for you, particularly at mentions. Some matters require your personal attendance, including where you are on bail with a condition to appear. We will tell you which applies to your case.
What if I cannot afford a lawyer?
Legal Aid NSW may be able to represent you depending on the charge and your means. Legal Aid and community legal centres also offer free advice sessions with no means test, and duty solicitors are available at most Local Courts on the day. Getting advice from someone is always better than getting none.
Get started
Charged with a criminal offence? Let’s talk today.
Send us your court attendance notice and the police fact sheet. We will tell you what you are facing, what the police have to prove, and what your realistic options are.