Police searched a car over a drug history and a hunch. A NSW judge found the search unlawful and excluded the drugs and phone. What it means for you.

We examine a case of MR v R [2026] NSWDC 28, which confirms that dismissed DV charges don’t end an ADVO, and children exposed to or witnessing abuse can still be protected persons.

He said he'd rather kill the puppy than hand it over — and argued that wasn't a threat. A NSW District Court appeal explains why the law disagreed.

NSW police can seize your phone, but seizing it is not the same as reading it or forcing you to unlock it. Know your rights, passcodes and Digital Evidence Access Orders.

Under the NSW Local Court's new Practice Note, your first court date for an ADVO or domestic violence charge is where pleas are entered — or entered for you — hearing dates locked in, and evidence timetables set. Here's why walking in unprepared is no longer an option.

Lose in the Local Court and you actually have two very different appeals open to you — against the conviction, against the sentence, or both. Here's how this works based on a real case.

In NSW, “post and boast” laws mean your social media upload can do more than identify you — it can increase your legal exposure. Section 154K targets “performance crime”, where a person commits a motor theft or break-and-enter offence and then disseminates footage to advertise it. In plain terms: if you steal a car and film yourself for TikTok, Snapchat or Instagram, you may be handing police a clean brief of evidence — and facing a higher maximum penalty than you would have

A lapsing ADVO is usually made for a set period (usually 6 months). If the defendant complies with all conditions and no breaches occur during that time, the police or the applicant will normally withdraw the application, and the court will dismiss the matter at the next mention.

If you plead guilty without correcting the Facts Sheet, you are admitting to the police’s version of the story, and the Court makes a finding of fact as per the Facts Sheet.

A summary of one of our recent traffic offence cases in which we were successful in achieving a non-conviction sentence for our client.

A NSW common assault case study examining sentencing submissions, mitigating factors and a Conditional Release Order made without conviction.

In essence, a severity appeal is an appeal against the severity of a sentence handed down by the Local Court. In layman's terms, it's essentially saying to the Court - “Your Honour, I am not denying my guilt, but the punishment in the Local Court was too harsh, can you please give me a more lenient sentence!". Thus, in severity appeals the Local Court of NSW has already found the defendant guilty, but the appeal isn't about guilt or innocence—it's about the fairness of the pu

An Apprehended Violence Order (AVO) or an Apprehended Domestic Violence Order (ADVO) is an order issued by the court to protect...

As part of our criminal law practice, we often encounter and deal with quite bizarre and interesting cases. Frequently we see clients...

You may be familiar with the old adage: “a man who is his own lawyer, has a fool for a client”. The notorious and mind-boggling criminal...

If you have been charged with a minor criminal offence in NSW, you generally have a good chance of avoiding a criminal conviction altogether if you decide to plead guilty, provided your criminal record is relatively clean. In these types of matters the Court would normally exercise its discretion by choosing to deal with the matter by way of a Section 10 dismissal or alternatively by imposing a Conditional Release Order (CRO) without a conviction or a fine. Case Study For the