Bail Applications

If you or a loved one have been charged with a criminal offence and have not been granted bail, or you wish to have your bail conditions varied, Prime Lawyers can help. We have a number of solicitors who specialise in Criminal Law matters and regularly appear in bail applications.

When someone has been charged for a criminal offence, the police have to make a decide whether or not to grant the accused person bail immediately. Generally, the more serious the allegations are the less likely it is the police will grant the person bail. If the police do not immediately grant the accused person bail, an application can be made to the Court requesting that the Magistrate or Judge presiding over the Court orders that bail is granted.

In matters where bail has been granted by the police or Court, it can still be necessary to make a bail application to have the bail varied if the restrictions and conditions imposed by the bail are excessively onerous.

Prime Lawyers has significant experience in successfully making applications to have bail both granted outright and varied.

What factors are considered when determining bail?

Although bail applications can be made in a number of Courts including the Local, District and Supreme Courts, each of these Courts must consider the criteria set out in section 32 of the Bail Act 1978 NSW. A complete copy of the relevant section can be found here.

Issues considered by the Court in bail applications include:

• The probability of the accused person appearing in court. This can include the likelihood of the defendant going overseas and may be answered in part by a condition that the defendant needs to hand in their passport.
• The seriousness and nature of the alleged offences.
• The accused person’s previous history, if any, of breaching bail or other Court Orders.
• The strength of prosecution case.
• The interests of the accused person, for example work commitments.
• The protection of the community.
• The likelihood of a full time imprisonment being imposed if found guilty.
• Available support for the accused person by family members and community.

Bail conditions

The Court may impose a variety of strict bail conditions including a curfew, regular reporting to a police station, directions not to associate with certain people or directions to attend a rehabilitation clinic. Alternatively, bail conditions may not be restrictive and may simply require you to attend Court on the next occasion.

When applying for bail an accused person can potentially satisfy some of the considerations of the Court, as set out in s 32 of the Bail Act, by suppling items such as a passport or money. When money is supplied as security in exchange for bail it is referred to as surety. This money is forfeit if bail is breached.

If bail has been refused can I try again?

An application for bail will only be heard more than once if the Court is satisfied that there are grounds for a further application for bail. Section 22A of the Bail Act 1978 sets out the criteria considered by the Court when determining if this requirement is satisfied. It states that additional applications can be made if:

• The person was not legally represented when the previous application was made:
• Information which is relevant was not presented previously and will be presented in the new application; and
• Relevant circumstances to the application have changed.

If you need to make a bail application or you would like to enquire on behalf of someone you know, please contact our office on (02) 9521 2222. Our Criminal Law specialists are happy to discuss the matter with you over the phone or organise an appointment face-to-face. You can also send an enquiry online now and we will call you shortly.