Current Affairs

Christian Porter | Populist Opinion v Procedural Fairness & Justice

  Popular Opinion Where there is smoke there is fire [2020 Four Corners Program as to recent and historical inappropriate behaviour of Christian Porter] as well as the more recent allegations of sexual assault dating back to 1988 [33 years ago]. Irrespective of Police confirmation of its own…

The Cannabis Cautioning Scheme

The debate over how to deal with cannabis use is back in the headlines again, courtesy of the ACT Government. In September of 2019 the ACT Government passed laws decriminalising the possession of small amounts of cannabis and cultivation of small numbers of cannabis plants. This approach to…

Illegal Mobile Phone Use On NSW Roads

The current penalty for using a mobile phone whilst driving a motor vehicle is $344 and five demerit points. But is this enough to deter drivers from using a mobile phone whilst on the road? The NSW Government is not convinced. With the increase of fatalities on NSW…

Pill Testing

As you’re aware, pill testing has been at the forefront of the media over the last few weeks. It comes in the wake of a number of young people dying at festivals from alleged drug overdoses. There has been public outcry, asking the NSW Premier, Gladys Berejiklian, to…

Proposed on the spot fines for low-range drink driving offences

The NSW government recently proposed to give police new powers to issue on-the-spot fines and licence suspensions for first time, low-range drink driving offences. A low-range drink driving offence applies to a driver who has recorded a prescribed concentration of alcohol (PCA) of between 0.05 – 0.08. The…

Digital Driver’s Licences – convenience or concern?

The NSW Parliament recently passed a Bill allowing for Digital Driver’s Licences to be used for proof of identity and proof of age purposes. Driver’s will still be issued with a physical card, however, they will no longer be required to carry it on them if they are…

Supreme Court jurisdiction questioned for hearing bail applications

In the recent decision of Noufl v Director of Public Prosecutions (NSW)[i] the Supreme Court ruled it did not have the jurisdiction to hear a bail application while an appeal was pending in the Court of Criminal Appeal. The decision was an appeal against conviction, with the appellant…

Immunity for on-field violence must end

It is time that we, as a society, stopped treating on-field violence by sport stars as being immune from criminal prosecution and held athletes accountable for their actions in the same way as the rest of us. This weekend’s round of NRL saw yet another ugly brawl between…

Major Changes to NSW Sentencing Law

Proposed Legislation The Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Amendment (Sentencing Options) Act 2017 No 53 will make substantial amendments to the Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act 1999 [“the Act”] and is scheduled to be proclaimed in about May 2018.  Gloss Overview  Abolition of Good Behaviour Bonds (s9) AND replacement with Conditional…

Court clarifies DUI charges

In a recent decision, the NSW Supreme Court clarified what is meant by driving under the influence. What is DUI? Many people use the term “DUI” as an umbrella term to refer to all kinds of drink driving charges. This is not technically correct. In law, there are…

New disclosure requirements for contracts for sale of residential land

From 1 September 2017, contracts for sale of residential land will need to be updated to include new documents and meet new disclosure requirements.   Before residential property can be sold, a vendor is required to prepare a contract for sale that: discloses information about a property’s title,…

Family Court backlog letting families down

Chief Justice Diana Bryant has called on the Government to increase funding for the Family Court, describing the underfunded system as letting down “vulnerable people caught up in the system”.   Newcastle: Court delays in action To see the backlog in action, look no further than Newcastle’s Federal…

Family Law changes aim for quicker decisions and victim safety

New laws proposed by the Federal Government would introduce streamlined parenting hearings and preventing victims of family violence from being confronted by alleged attackers. Following a review of the Family Law Act, the changes are expected to help reduce bottlenecks and long waiting periods in the Family Court,…

Housing Affordability: New Bills before the Federal Parliament

Housing affordability, rising house prices and high levels of home loan indebtedness are topics that have received much public comment in the media. In the 2017–18 Budget, the Government announced the “Reducing Pressure on Housing Affordability – first home super saver scheme. There are currently four bills before…

The Newcastle Herald: Behind Newcastle’s rising crime statistics

Opinion | What’s behind area’s rising crime statistics The NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research disclosed last week that crime across most of NSW had remained stable or fallen over the past two years. The bad news, particularly for Newcastle, is that most major crimes are increasing in the…

New increased police powers unjustified and problematic

Recent changes to parole and shoot to kill laws and regulations introduced through amendments to terrorism legislation in New South Wales present some very real concerns to our priceless civil liberties under the repeated political populace mantra that this is necessary to make us “safer from terrorists that…

Federal Government’s Proposed New Encryption Laws

The Federal Government has recently announced that it intends to make new encryption laws to force tech companies to provide law enforcement authorities with assistance to intercept and decrypt communications. While little else is known concerning the details of these proposed laws, the language which the Prime Minister…

JUDGES NOT OUT OF TOUCH – Survey Shows

For many years, there has been a perception amongst the community that Judges are out of touch with contemporary societal values when it comes to sentencing. The question however, is whether that perception is the product of our Judges and Magistrates, in fact being out of touch with…