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With a cramped time frame, she did in 3 days what another firm dilly-dallied for 7 months. Lisa kept me informed. Helena made me feel comfortable in a sticky situation.

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I will definitely be using your company in the future if needed. Lisa kept me at ease also there were no grey areas with great advice. Helana is a great front of house.

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My legal matter concerning an application for a Domestic Violence Order was managed by Mr Thomas Allen. I am grateful for the outcome he obtained. Without Mr Allen and his ongoing support, I would be certain of a different result. It has been an extremely stressful period. Mr Allen’s astute ability to liaise on my behalf and his expertise was invaluable and for which I am grateful as I am now able to move forward. Thanking you

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I would like to take this opportunity to thank Armstrong Legal and specifically Mr Thomas Allen for representing me in my recent case. At the outset, I would like to thank Mr Allen for the very professional delivery of his legal service. From the first time that I met Mr Allen, I was very impressed with his demeanour and delivery as he made me feel at ease knowing the severity of my case. Mr Allen not only gave me the possible positive outcomes of the case but also the realisation of the worst-case scenario as far as sentencing goes. … I will certainly be recommending Armstrong Legal to any of my friends or family needing representation in criminal matters. Thank you so very much.

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Thank you for your representation and help. Fingers crossed for the next step and parole. I just want to say that from the first phone call to your office, your service has been outstanding and have put my mind at ease. I am glad I picked your number to ring.

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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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"Andrew Tiedt was very professional and considerate to personal circumstances and gave sound advice that resulted in the best outcome possible. Highly recommended."

This article was written by Michelle Makela - Legal Practice Director

Michelle has over 15 years experience in the legal industry, working across commercial litigation, criminal law, family law and estate planning. Michelle has been involved in all practice areas of the firm and in her personal practice has had experience in litigation at all levels (state and federal industrial tribunals, the Supreme Court, Court of Appeal, the Federal Court, Federal...

Supplying a Controlled Drug to a Child

The ACT Parliament views the offence of Supplying a Controlled Drug to a Child as particularly heinous, with penalties of up to four times the maximum for similar offences which do not involve children. Pursuant to Section 625 of the Criminal Code 2002, the offence encompasses both supply, and intent to supply. A child is defined to be an individual under 18 years old.

The term “controlled drug” is broad and is defined to be “a substance prescribed by regulation as a controlled drug, but does not include a growing plant”. A list of prescribed substances can be found in the Criminal Code Regulation 2005, and include both controlled medicines and prohibited substances. Well-known examples including morphine, cocaine, methadone, cannabis and codeine.

Penalties the Court Can Impose

The maximum penalty for the offence will depend on the whether the drug supplied, or intended to be supplied, was cannabis or another controlled drug, and the quantity of cannabis alleged.

For a controlled drug other than cannabis, the maximum penalty that can be imposed is a fine of 2000 penalty units and/or 20 years imprisonment. This is contrasted against a supply offence to an adult, where the maximum penalty is a fine of up to 500 penalty units and/or 5 years imprisonment.

Where the controlled drug is cannabis, the maximum penalty that can be imposed is a fine of up to 500 penalty units and/or 5 years imprisonment. This is contrasted for the offence of supply (traffic) cannabis and does not involve a child, where the maximum penalty is a fine of up to 300 penalty units and/or 3 years imprisonment.

Where the quantity of cannabis is not less than the trafficable amount, 300 grams, the maximum penalty that can be imposed is a fine of up to 1000 penalty units and/or 10 years imprisonment. For the offence of trafficking in a trafficable quantity of cannabis and there is no supply to a child alleged, the same maximum penalties apply.

However, the Court can impose a range of penalties including:

What Actions Might Constitute Supply a Controlled Drug to a Child?

Examples include:

You meet up with your supplier and buy some ketamine before meeting up with your friends. You share the ketamine with your friends, who are under 18 years old, whilst you are 18 years old or above.
You are at a house party doing lines of cocaine, a random girl approaches you – you don’t know how old she is but she looks like a teenager. She asks you if you have more, and offers to pay you cash and gives you her phone number. You tell her you need the money tomorrow and let her do a line. You are over 18 years old, and she ends up being 16.
Your little brother knows you have some cannabis stashed at home. He sends you text message asking if he can use some to roll a joint. He is 15 years old. You agree.

Where you possess more that the trafficable quantity of a controlled drug, there is a presumption of possession for purposes of supply.

What the Police Must Prove

To convict you for supplying a controlled drug to a child, the Prosecution must prove beyond reasonable doubt:

that you supplied a substance, or possessed a substance with intention to supply;
the substance was a controlled drug;
the recipient, or intended recipient, was a child;
you were not authorised to supply the drug under the Medicines, Poisons and Therapeutic Goods Act 2008.

“Supply” is defined under the legislation to be “supply by way of sale or otherwise” and “agree to supply”. It therefore does not require the action of supply to actually occur for the offence to be made out.

Possible Defences

Possible defences include:

to argue the substance was not a controlled drug;
to argue that you did not intend to supply the drug;
to argue that you did not supply the drug;
to argue that you did not have reasonable grounds to believe the recipient of the drug was a child.

Which Court Will Hear Your Matter?

For matters involving supply of a controlled drug other than cannabis to a child, the ACT Supreme Court will hear your matter.

For matters involving supply cannabis to a child, whether or not the quantity is a trafficable quantity, it may be dealt with in either the ACT Magistrates Court or the ACT Supreme Court, depending what the Prosecution and/or you elect to do.

If you require legal advice or representation in any legal matter, please contact Armstrong Legal.

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