For many who are interested in the criminal justice system, becoming a magistrate or judge is considered to be an honour. Magistrates oversee cases in our Local Courts, and are responsible for finalising the vast majority of cases in NSW. Some of us, however, might prefer to skip the years of working as a lawyer… Read more »
New laws in NSW have extended to the media a ‘presumption in favour’ of being allowed to broadcast final court proceedings such as the sentencing of offenders in certain criminal cases. A ‘presumption in favour’ means that applications should be granted unless there are good reasons for their refusal. However, not all judges are apparently… Read more »
Are police listening in on your conversations? Police aren’t allowed to just listen in whenever they feel like it – the proper procedure involves applying to the court for a warrant which allows them to use surveillance devices to intercept telephone conversations. This procedure is supposed to ensure that a decision is made by someone who… Read more »
Courts aim to uphold notions of fairness and equality before the law, and a key part of this is ensuring consistency in sentencing outcomes. To promote consistency, magistrates and judges often have regard to statistics compiled by the Judicial Commission when imposing sentences for certain offences. This data is commonly known as ‘JIRS statistics’. JIRS… Read more »
Circumstantial evidence is evidence which does not directly link a person to a crime, but a particular fact or collection of facts that may infer their guilt. Even innocent people may appear condemned by circumstantial evidence, so is it enough to secure a conviction? Courts have consistently upheld the proposition that circumstantial evidence can be… Read more »
The Local Courts have an enormous burden – as well as dealing with small civil claims, all criminal matters start in the local court and the vast majority are finalised there. About 250,000 cases are finalised in the local courts of NSW each year, while more serious offences are sent on to the District Court… Read more »
Many people seem to think that our courts are too lenient on those who are guilty of crimes. Radio shock-jocks and tabloid newspapers frequently cite hand-chosen cases where guilty defendants “get off lightly” – using these to make sweeping generalisations about our courts becoming “soft on crime”. But results from a recent study by the… Read more »
Ask any experienced criminal lawyer and they will tell you that the outcome of a criminal case can be affected to an extent by the particular magistrate or judge that you get. Although the judicial system expects members of the judiciary to exercise impartiality and make unbiased decisions according to law, a number of judges… Read more »
Current Federal Court Judge Michelle Gordon was recently announced as the next High Court Justice. Judge Gordon will be sworn in as the 52nd High Court Justice on the 9th of June this year. The announcement was made on April 14 by Attorney-General George Brandis, who applauded Judge Gordon for her considerable experience in the… Read more »
Mental health professionals play a crucial role in criminal cases where the defendant is alleged to suffer from a mental health condition. In the Local Court, for example, evidence that of a “mental condition” can be used to have charges dismissed altogether, provided that the defendant completes a “treatment program” lasting up to 6 months…. Read more »
