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Thank you Armstrong Legal, the lawyers that have helped over the past 3 years but more importantly, thank you to Thomas Allen for the major part you and Mr Buckland played. Cannot thank you enough. Cheers.

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Hi all. I would like to thank Ms Lisa Riley for all her help with my legal issues this past month. It was the most harrowing experience of my life and thanks to her expertise, professionalism and knowledge of the law, I came out almost unscathed. I have no hesitation in recommending Lisa Riley and Armstrong Legal if you need help. The service is amazing and the cost was very minimal for the great outcome. Thank you Lisa for helping me in the most difficult time.

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I just want to thank you from the bottom of my heart. My whole life I was thrown away, you made me feel like I did mean something. I could not have asked for a better lawyer. Your compassion and love for your job is inspiring. Your upfront and honesty were muchly appreciated, you are a beautiful person. Thank you for not giving up on me and thank you for all the work you put in. I wish you all the best for the future and I will be recommending you to everyone I know. You're amazing!!!!

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I just wanted to thank you for representing me on Monday, I was overjoyed & relieved with the outcome. I don’t think it could have gone any better. All the best, I hope you got to celebrate this one instead after work, you forever made a difference in my life.

I know I thanked you before we parted company but please allow me to reiterate in writing my sincere deepest thanks for defending me in court today. … Armstrong Legal certainly has a great Lawyer you are a credit to the company and I'm quite sure you will secure a very successful future! … My Kindest Regards and Thanks

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Throughout Angela has been the consummate professional. She maintained a calm, yet strong demeanour remained informative and completely open in her communication and took complete ownership of the situation. We felt confident we finally had an advocate to steer us out of the nightmare we were in, and she did so with great respect and sincerity. I cannot speak more highly of Angela. She has literally rescued our family from what looked very much like a hopeless future.

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Words can’t describe how grateful I am to Trudie Cameron being my solicitor and to Andrew Tiedt presenting my case in the court. They both have been very supportive and amazingly professional and effective. I’ve got an absolutely fantastic outcome I couldn’t even dream about.

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Soon after meeting Andrew I knew he was the solicitor I wanted to handle my matter. He immediately sprang into action which brought me stability and hope during a tumultuous time in my life. Andrew was never afraid to give me straight answers to my tough questions which is a true mark of integrity. He is clearly at ease in the court environment and I believe his calm and measured demeanour went a long way to helping me secure the best result from my day in court. I would certainly recommend you approach Andrew if you need assistance.

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This article was written by Andrew Fraser - Senior Associate - Canberra

Andrew works in the areas of criminal law and traffic law, providing practical advice in all of his clients’ matters. Andrew has, over many years, developed positive working relationships with prosecutors, magistrates and judges. His no-nonsense approach means he has a reputation for putting forward the best case possible for clients. Andrew has won many matters for his clients, including...

Bribery

Bribery is an offence under Section 356 of the Criminal Code 2002. The maximum penalty is a fine of 1000 penalty units and/or ten years imprisonment.

What is Bribery?

The offence of bribery is contained in Section 356.1 and 356.2 of the Code, which states that a person commits the offence if they dishonestly:

provide a benefit to someone else; or
cause a benefit to be provided to someone else; or
offer a benefit to someone else; or
cause an offer or promise of a benefit to be made to someone else; and
do so with the intention that the other person will provide a favour.

If a person bribes a foreign official they will be dealt with under Commonwealth legislation rather than state legislation.

What Actions Might Constitute Bribery?

Examples of bribery include:

paying your local MP money so you can construct a building without going through the resource consent process;
paying a public official money to allow you to operate a bar without the necessary liquor licence.

What Must be Proven?

To find a person guilty of bribery, the court must be satisfied that the person acted dishonestly, with the intention to:

cause a benefit to be provided; or
offered to provide a benefit; or
caused an offer of a benefit; or promise of a benefit to be provided when the accused or another person was not entitled to the benefit; and
had the intention of receiving a favour.

Related Offences

There are a number of other offences under the Criminal Code Act that are related to bribery.

Payola

Payola is an offence under Section 358. Payola occurs when a person who purports to make disinterested selections or examinations, asks for or accepts a benefit in exchange for influencing the selection or examination.

The maximum penalty for payola is 500 penalty units and/or 5 years imprisonment.

Abuse of Public Office

Abuse of public office is an offence under Section 359. This offence occurs when a public official exercises an official function, exercises official influence, uses information or engages in conduct in the exercise of their public duties with the intention of dishonestly obtaining a benefit or causing a detriment.

A person can be found guilty of this offence if they exercise their influence or use information that they gained as a public official whether or not they still hold their position as a public official.

The maximum penalty is 500 penalty units and/or five years imprisonment.

Possible Defences

A person charged with this offence can argue:

that they did not do the acts alleged (factual defence);
that they acted under duress.

Which Court Will Hear Your Matter?

All bribery matters will be dealt with in either the ACT Magistrates Court or the ACT Supreme Court.

When a matter is dealt with summarily (in the Magistrates Court) the maximum penalty is $15,000 and/or 5 years imprisonment. When the matter is dealt with on indictment (in the Supreme Court) the maximum penalty of 10 years imprisonment can be imposed.

Penalties

The maximum penalty is 1000 penalty units, 10 years imprisonment or both; however the court can impose any of the following penalties:

If you require legal advice about bribery or any other legal matter, please contact Armstrong Legal.

WHERE TO NEXT?

If you suspect that you may be under investigation, or if you have been charged with an offence, it is vital to get competent legal advice as early as possible. Our lawyers are highly specialised in criminal law and will be able to guide you through the process while dealing with the various authorities related to your matter.

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