Posts Categorized: Criminal Law

The Criminal Offence of Engaging in a Terrorist Act in Australia

Terrorist Act

By Paul Gregoire and Ugur Nedim New South Wales Police News reported last Thursday that a 16-year-old boy had been charged with a terrorism offence, “following an investigation by the Joint Counter Terrorism Team Sydney into an alleged stabbing at a Sydney church”. This relates the stabbing of an priest in the western Sydney suburb… Read more »

NSW District Court Cannot Hear Appeals Limited to Local Court’s Refusal to Order Costs

Downing Centre Court

By Paul Gregoire and Ugur Nedim Natalia Mikhaylova faced a Local Court defended hearing over two counts of common assault, which is an offence under section 61 of the Crimes Act 1900 (NSW) carrying a maximum penalty of 2 years in prison. The charges were dismissed by the NSW Local Court in November 2023, as… Read more »

Categories of Practising Law in New South Wales: The Legal Practice Matrix

Solicitor of responsibilities

By Paul Gregoire and Ugur Nedim Both coming into effect on 1 July 2015, the Legal Profession Uniform Law (NSW) (the Uniform Law) and the Legal Profession Uniform Law Australian Solicitors’ Conduct Rules 2015 (the Conduct Rules), establish the rules that regulate the conduct of lawyers in New South Wales, over and above the responsibilities… Read more »

Sentencing in NSW: The Three Stage Process When Considering Imprisonment

Sentencing in NSW

By Paul Gregoire and Ugur Nedim Sometime after 8 pm on 15 January 2022, the then 14-year-old Thomas entered the kitchen, where his mother SJ was making him dinner and his then 51-year-old stepfather SR was also present, with the older couple having recently returned from a six-hour-long celebratory lunch and drinks.  SR commenced calling… Read more »

NSW Bans the Use of Spit Hoods in Places of Detention

Spit Hoods

By Paul Gregoire and Ugur Nedim Two incidents in 2016 that involved spit hoods in certain Australian jurisdictions brought the issue of the controversial use of these antiquated devices to national and global attention. The first was the airing of the Four Corners documentary Australia’s Shame, which featured imagery of a shirtless 17-year-old Aboriginal boy strapped to… Read more »

Roger Rogerson: Decorated NSW Police Officer and Cold-Blooded Killer

Roger Rogerson

By Paul Gregoire and Ugur Nedim Legendary Sydney whistleblower Sallie-Anne Huckstepp knew her time was up after she’d accussed NSW police detective sergeant Roger Rogerson of killing her boyfriend, heroin dealer Warren Lanfranchi, during a 1981 interview with 60 Minutes. Such was the reputation of the notorious Sydney police officer, who died on 21 January, after suffering… Read more »

The Offence of Engaging in Legal Practice Without Being Admitted as a Lawyer

Fake lawyer

By Paul Gregoire and Ugur Nedim What possessed Matthew Laba to pose as a registered Sydney criminal lawyer and represent four clients across four separate criminal cases in courts across the Greater Sydney region over a period of months, continues to remain a mystery. Indeed, it’s been lost upon no one that the television series Suits,… Read more »

Bromley Versus the King: Australia’s Worst Miscarriage of Justice Continues

Miscarriage of Justice

By Paul Gregoire and Ugur Nedim Ngarrindjeri and Narungga man Derek Bromley was sentenced to life imprisonment by the South Australian Supreme Court on 14 March 1985, for the murder of Stephen Docoza, who was bludgeoned to death on 4 April 1984 and was found floating in Adelaide’s River Torrens days later. Bromley’s case is significant as… Read more »

The Appeal Court’s Reasoning for Quashing Kathleen Folbigg’s Criminal Convictions

Folbigg judgment

By Paul Gregoire and Ugur Nedim NSW Supreme Court Justice Graham Barr sentenced Newcastle woman Kathleen Folbigg to 40 years imprisonment, with non-parole set at 30 years, on 21 May 2003, in relation to the murder of three of her young children and the manslaughter of another. Folbigg became known as the nation’s “worst female serial… Read more »