Is it Fair for a Defendant to Face a Third Criminal Trial?
Jarryd Hayne will face a third trial after a successful application to the New South Wales Court of Criminal Appeal. The former NRL star was released on bail from Cooma Correctional Centre last month after having his previous convictions for...
Affirmative Sexual Consent Laws Passed in New South Wales
The New South Wales parliament passed laws this week, which mean that those who plan to have sexual relations are required to take active steps to ensure the other person is a willing participant. Welcomed by victims’ groups The laws...
Sydney Criminal Lawyer Vows to Fight Charge of Aggravated Sexual Assault
Sydney Criminal Lawyer Steven Mercael is currently on bail and continues to practise as a defence lawyer, as he awaits his trial which is scheduled to commence in February 2021. Mr Mercael’s criminal defence team applied to have his name...
Jack de Belin Not Guilty of One Count of Sexual Assault, Hung Jury on Remaining Counts
The futures of footballers Jack de Belin and Callan Sinclair remain uncertain after a jury acquitted them both of one charge of aggravated sexual assault against a woman in a Wollongong unit in December 2018, but was not able to...
Rape or Sexual Assault? What is the Correct Legal Term in New South Wales?
Yesterday’s sentencing of former football star Jarryd Hayne has triggered online debate about whether the correct description of the offence for which he was convicted is ‘rape’ or ‘sexual assault’. Mr Hayne was convicted of two counts of sexual assault,...
The Law, Penalties and Defences for Aggravated Sexual Assault in Company
A jury in Downing Centre District Court has heard that a then-19 year old woman felt “dead inside” when NRL payers Jack de Belin and Callan Sinclair allegedly forced her to have sexual intercourse in the early hours of 9...
The Offence of Aggravated Sexual Assault in New South Wales
Sydney pizza shop worker Ricardo Audish has been remanded in custody after a New South Wales District Court jury returned verdicts of guilty in just two hours for three counts of aggravated sexual assault. Mr Audish’s bail was refused despite...
What Does the Law Say About Consent in Sexual Assault Cases?
When twenty-two year old Chantel Contos shared her story of an alleged sexual assault in a private school, she was not expecting the enormity of the response. Since her disclosure, hundreds of other women have come forward, telling details of...
Court Reveals Identity of Lawyer Charged with Aggravated Sexual Assault
It may be common knowledge in the legal profession, but the name of a Sydney criminal defence lawyer charged with aggravated sexual assault has now been made public, after the lawyer’s appeal against the Local Court’s refusal to grant a...
The Rules Relating to Commencing and Discontinuing Criminal Prosecutions in NSW
The Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) in Victoria is facing a barrage of criticism after withdrawing the criminal charges against a de-frocked Catholic Priest. The complainant, now in her early 60s, has spent nearly a decade trying...
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