Where we are
Lawyers in the Hills District
We are in Bella Vista, so the Hills is not a region we service, it is where we work and where we live. That matters more than it sounds, because there is no single court covering the Hills. Which one your matter is listed at depends on where it happened and which police command laid the charge, and people regularly find that out the hard way.
Alicia Catron 0407 171 626 or Michelle Simmons 0407 534 594. Suite 3.13, 33 Lexington Drive, Bella Vista NSW 2153. Open Monday to Friday, and contactable outside those hours when a matter cannot wait.
On this page
Which court Suburbs we cover What we do Local detail Why local matters Common questions
Which court will my matter be heard at?
The Hills Shire has no courthouse of its own. Matters are split across four courts depending on where the alleged offence occurred and which Police Area Command laid the charge, which is why two people living three streets apart can end up in different courts.
| Court | Typically covers |
|---|---|
| Parramatta 12 George Street |
Castle Hill, Baulkham Hills, Bella Vista, Norwest, Winston Hills, North Rocks, Northmead and Carlingford. The largest share of Hills matters, and where the District Court sits for anything committed for trial or sentence |
| Blacktown 1 Kildare Road |
Kellyville, North Kellyville, Rouse Hill, Beaumont Hills, The Ponds, Stanhope Gardens, Glenwood, Box Hill, Riverstone and Schofields |
| Hornsby 294 Pacific Highway |
Cherrybrook, West Pennant Hills, Dural, Round Corner, Glenhaven, Galston and Glenorie |
| Windsor Cnr North and Court Streets |
Matters arising on the Hawkesbury side, including Annangrove, Kenthurst and Maraylya |
The dividing line people get wrong is Windsor Road. A random breath test south of Round Corner, toward Baulkham Hills and Bella Vista, generally ends up at Parramatta. The same stop north of Kellyville, toward Rouse Hill and Box Hill, generally ends up at Blacktown. If you are not sure, the court is stated on your court attendance notice, and if it still is not clear, call us and we will tell you.
Family law matters go to the Federal Circuit and Family Court at Parramatta rather than to any of the above. All courts we appear in.
Suburbs we act in
Across the Hills Shire and the surrounding areas:
- Central Hills. Castle Hill, Baulkham Hills, Bella Vista, Norwest, Winston Hills, Northmead, North Rocks
- North west growth areas. Kellyville, North Kellyville, Beaumont Hills, Rouse Hill, Box Hill, The Ponds, Stanhope Gardens, Glenwood, Parklea
- Rural and semi-rural. Dural, Round Corner, Glenhaven, Kenthurst, Annangrove, Maraylya, Middle Dural, Galston, Glenorie
- Adjoining. Cherrybrook, West Pennant Hills, Carlingford, Seven Hills, Kings Langley, Quakers Hill, and across into the Hawkesbury
If your suburb is not listed, call anyway. The list reflects where most of our work comes from, not the limits of where we act. We appear in Local Courts across New South Wales.
What we do
Criminal law
Assault, drug offences, stealing and fraud, sexual offences, weapons and summary matters. We act from the investigation stage onwards and we can attend a police station, including at Castle Hill.
Traffic law
Drink and drug driving, dangerous and negligent driving, licence appeals, suspensions and disqualification removals. The single largest category of work coming out of this area.
AVOs and domestic violence
Applying for an order, defending one, or varying an existing order. Where police attend a domestic incident, a provisional order is usually made on the spot and the conditions are what change your life first.
Family law
Parenting arrangements, property settlements, divorce and matters involving family violence. Heard at the Federal Circuit and Family Court at Parramatta.
Conveyancing
Buying, selling and transferring property. In this area that means a lot of off the plan contracts in the growth corridors, strata in Norwest and Bella Vista, and transfers between family members.
Wills and estates
Wills, powers of attorney, enduring guardianship, probate, letters of administration and contested estates.
Local detail that actually matters
Policing
Most of the Hills Shire falls within The Hills Police Area Command, based at Castle Hill. The northern growth areas around Rouse Hill and Riverstone fall within Quakers Hill, and the rural north into the Hawkesbury command. Which command laid the charge is usually what determines the court, so it is the first thing worth establishing.
If police have asked you to attend an interview at Castle Hill or anywhere else, get advice before you go. You are not obliged to participate, and most of the damage in a criminal matter is done before court rather than in it.
Traffic
Windsor Road, Old Northern Road, Showground Road and the M2 interchanges carry heavy enforcement, and random breath testing operations run regularly through Castle Hill, Baulkham Hills and Kellyville, particularly on Friday and Saturday nights. Drink driving and licence matters are the largest single category of work we see from this area, and licence appeals in particular run to strict time limits that are lost by waiting rather than by the facts.
Property
The growth corridors at Box Hill, North Kellyville and The Ponds mean a great deal of off the plan purchasing, where the contract terms around sunset dates, variations and completion are where the risk sits. In Norwest and Bella Vista it is more often strata, where the strata report and the by-laws matter as much as the contract. In both cases the useful time to have the contract looked at is before you sign, not during the cooling off period.
Why a local firm is worth something here
- We are at Parramatta, Blacktown and Hornsby most weeks. Which means we know the lists, the prosecutors and how each of those courts runs, and that is worth more on the day than any general familiarity
- You deal with a principal. Every matter is run by Alicia or Michelle. You will not be handed to a junior and you will not repeat your story three times
- Your lawyer is fifteen minutes away. For a police station attendance or a matter that needs to be dealt with today, that is a practical difference rather than a marketing line
- Everything in one office. A charge that brings an AVO, a parenting dispute and a property settlement with it is four problems in three jurisdictions. We handle all of it rather than referring the parts out
- Costs agreed before we start, and we will tell you if a matter is not worth what it would cost to run
Common questions
Which court will my matter be heard at?
It depends on where the alleged offence occurred and which police command laid the charge, not on where you live. Broadly, the central Hills goes to Parramatta, the north west growth areas to Blacktown, the Hornsby side to Hornsby, and the Hawkesbury side to Windsor. Your court attendance notice states it. If it is not clear, send it to us and we will tell you.
I was breath tested on Windsor Road. Which court is that?
It turns on where on Windsor Road. South of Round Corner, toward Baulkham Hills and Bella Vista, generally means Parramatta. North of Kellyville, toward Rouse Hill and Box Hill, generally means Blacktown. The notice will confirm it.
Do you have to attend a court in the Hills?
There is no courthouse in the Hills Shire, so no. Every matter goes to one of Parramatta, Blacktown, Hornsby or Windsor. On many matters a solicitor can appear for you and you do not need to attend at all, particularly at a mention.
Police want to interview me at Castle Hill.
Get advice before you go. Beyond providing your name and address you are generally not obliged to answer questions, and an account given without advice is very difficult to recover from. We can attend the station with you or advise by phone, including outside business hours.
Do you only take criminal work?
No. Criminal and traffic are the largest part of what we do, but we also act in family law, conveyancing, and wills and estates. That combination is deliberate, because these problems arrive together more often than not.
What does a first appointment cost?
Speak to us and we will tell you what the work will cost before it starts, in a costs agreement. If a matter is not worth what it would cost to run, we will say so rather than run it.
Are you available outside business hours?
The office is open Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm. Arrests and police attendances do not confine themselves to those hours, so we are contactable outside them when something cannot wait until Monday.
Talk to a lawyer down the road
Send us the notice, the contract or the letter and we will tell you where you stand. If it is not something we do, we will point you to someone who does.
Alicia Catron 0407 171 626 or Michelle Simmons 0407 534 594. Suite 3.13, 33 Lexington Drive, Bella Vista NSW 2153. PO Box 7834, Norwest NSW 2153.