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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...

Community-Based Orders (WA)

The law governing sentencing for criminal offences in Western Australia is the Sentencing Act 1995. Community-based orders are non-custodial orders that can be made under the Act. Community-based orders give the court options for supervising offenders while they continue to live in the community.

When a person is placed on a community-based order they are placed under the supervision of the Department of Corrections and they may be required to undergo treatment or take part in vocational, educational or personal development programs. The offender may also have to perform community service work as a condition of the order. A community corrections officer makes sure that the offender meets all the conditions the court has imposed. If the order includes supervision, then the offender must also report to the officer regularly during the period of the order.

Making a community-based order

When a court is considering making a community-based order, it will usually require a pre-sentence report to be prepared. The matter will usually have to be adjourned to a period while the report is prepared. This will involve staff from the Department of Corrections interviewing the offender and other persons involved to assess the person’s suitability for the order.

A community-based order may be made for any period from six months to two years.

When a community-based order is issued the offender must:

Report to their community corrections officer within 72 hours of the sentence being delivered;
Agree to advise their community corrections officer if they change their address or their employment;
Agree not to leave the State without the permission of Community Corrections;
Comply with the directions of Community Corrections;
Comply with the terms of the order.

Requirements of a community-based order

There are three requirements that can be imposed on a community-based order in Western Australia. The court must include at least one of these requirements but can include as many as it chooses.

Supervision requirement

A supervision requirement requires the offender to be supervised so that their progress can be monitored and regular counselling given.

The community corrections officer will decide how often the offender needs to report to Corrections. This may be weekly or several times a week.

Program requirement

A program requirement requires the offender to participate in treatment and assessment for drug or alcohol abuse. There may also be a requirement that the person attend an educational, training, vocational or personal development program. The court can also direct that they live at a specific location so they can attend the relevant program.

Community service requirement

A community service requirement requires the offender to complete a specified number of hours of community work as a condition of the order. The number of hours may between 40 and 120 hours. In each 7-day period of the order, at least 12 hours must be worked.

A community service requirement may involve working with an organisation or the offender may have to join a group which is allocated work on outdoor community projects.

Spent conviction orders

In Western Australia courts have the power to make a spent conviction order at the time that they make a community-based order. This means that once the period of the community-based order has been successfully completed, the offender does not have to reveal the details of the conviction to anyone, except in exceptional circumstances.

Completing a community-based order

If the order is completed and no breaches alleged, the sentence is finalised. If the court decided to make a spent conviction order when the sentence was imposed, then no conviction will be recorded. If a spent conviction order was not made, the offender will have a conviction/s recorded against them for the offence/s.

Breach of a community-based order

If the offender is alleged to have breached the order by not complying with its terms or by committing another offence while the order is in place, the community corrections officer will prepare a breach report for the court. The case will then come back before the court. The offender may be re-sentenced for the original offences and may not receive the benefit of another community-based order. The offender will also be dealt with for the new offence.

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

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