Apprehended Personal Violence Order- Neighbours at War - Undertakings

Published 24 Oct 2011

Case Study

Criminal Defence Lawyers Sydney and Parramatta Offices

Criminal offence – Criminal Matter – Apprehended Personal Violence Order- Neighbours at War - Undertakings

Nyman Gibson Stewart

Criminal Lawyers

Blacktown Local Court

Represented by Solicitor: Christopher Yee 

Facts: Our client came to us after NSW Police filed an Apprehended Personal Violence Order against him. This represented the latest AVO following a short history of disputes with a neighbour. It was alleged that our client had engaged in behaviour that caused the protected persons fear for their safety. Our client did not consent to any final orders being put into place and the matter was listed for a hearing at Blacktown Local Court.

Result: As the hearing approached, it appeared that the Police had acquired some 120 pages of typewritten statements from the protected persons outlining incidents when they felt fear or were intimidated by our client. The Police also indicated there was CCTV footage depicting some of the incidents. Both of the protected persons were in attendance at court prepared to give evidence against our client. The Police Prosecutor was prepared to proceed with a hearing. After taking instructions from his client, Mr Yee entered into negotiations with the Police Prosecutor in an effort to resolve the matter without having to go to hearing. After many hours of negotiation, Mr Yee convinced the Police to withdraw the AVO, on the basis that his client enter into an out-of-court agreement. The agreement was finalized and the Police withdrew the application for the AVO.

This was a fantastic result, by neg an acceptable result, our client avoided final orders following

AVO’s (Apprehended Violence Orders) can be misused by those applying for them as a means of gaining some kind of advantage or power. It is not unusual to find AVO applications based on false complaints. If a defendant consents to orders in these circumstances, there can be serious consequences. If a court imposes final Apprehended Violence Orders upon you, any breach of those orders could land you with a serious criminal charge or even imprisonment.

If you are faced with AVO proceedings against you, it is important that you seek advice from Criminal Law Specialists.

Like all of our criminal defence team, Christopher can be contacted 24/7 for urgent legal advice.  Christopher works from our Parramatta office.