Brisbane Magistrates Court: a first timer guide

Get the right building

There are two courthouses a short walk apart on George Street and people mix them up every week.

• 363 George Street is the Brisbane Magistrates Court. Opened in 2004, twenty six courtrooms. This is where criminal and traffic matters start, where domestic violence applications are heard, and where the arrest court sits.
• 415 George Street is the Queen Elizabeth II Courts of Law, which holds the District Court, the Supreme Court and the Court of Appeal.
• 119 North Quay is the Harry Gibbs Commonwealth Law Courts, which is family law and federal jurisdiction.

Your notice to appear, bail undertaking or application names the court. Read it. Security screening is at the entrance and bags go through a scanner, so do not bring anything that could be treated as a weapon.

Getting there without a car

Do not drive into the CBD for this. There is no public parking at the courthouse, commercial parking in that block is among the most expensive in Brisbane, and early bird rates require you to be parked well before your listing.

• Train. Roma Street and Central stations are both a short walk. Roma Street is at the George Street end of the CBD and is usually the easier approach.
• Busway. King George Square and Queen Street stations put you within a few minutes walk.
• From the Gold Coast. The train from Helensvale or Nerang to Roma Street beats the M1 at 8:00am, and you will not spend forty minutes looking for a park at the other end.
• If you must drive, book a commercial car park online the night before and price it properly. Give yourself an extra thirty minutes.

The list, and why this one is confusing

The daily law list is on screens in the foyer and published online, updated at 6:45am and again at 8:45am to pick up overnight arrests.

Brisbane runs several separate lists in the same building on the same morning, so read the heading as well as your name: general criminal mentions, a domestic violence list, the arrest court, the Murri Court, coroners courts and small claims rooms.

Find your surname, note the court number and the time, and go to that courtroom. If your name is not there, ask at the counter or ring 1800 325 085 rather than assuming you have the wrong day.

The arrest court

If somebody was arrested and not released by police, they are held in the watchhouse and brought before the court on the next sitting day. That is the arrest court, and it is where bail gets decided.

If you are attending as a family member, get there early and tell the duty lawyer or the solicitor acting who you are and what you can offer. What matters is concrete: an address the person can live at, whether you can supervise them, whether you can provide a surety, and their employment.

Section 16 of the Bail Act 1980 (Qld) requires the court to refuse bail where there is an unacceptable risk of failing to appear, committing an offence, endangering someone or interfering with witnesses. Conditions such as a curfew or reporting exist to answer those risks, and the material has to be ready before the matter is called on.

What happens at a mention here

A mention is a short administrative listing. Nothing is proved and no evidence is heard. When your name is called you stand up, state your name, and answer the magistrate.

The usual questions are whether you have a lawyer, whether you have received the police brief, and whether you are pleading guilty or not guilty. If you have not had legal advice, say so and ask for an adjournment to get it. At a first mention that is granted as a matter of course.

You will be in the building far longer than the mention takes. Brisbane lists are large. Plan for the full morning and do not book anything before lunch.

Resist the temptation to plead guilty on the day just to make it end. It is very difficult to withdraw a plea, and the QP9 police summary is frequently not the version of events you would agree with once you read it properly.

Conduct, clothes and phones

Queensland Courts asks that you dress neatly, and states plainly that a suit is not required. Tidy and covered is the standard.

• Phone off in the courtroom, not silent.
• No recording, photographing or broadcasting of proceedings.
• No eating, drinking or chewing gum in the courtroom.
• Bow your head to the coat of arms behind the bench as you enter and leave.
• Stand when the magistrate enters or leaves. The bailiff will call "all rise".
• Address the magistrate as "Your Honour", and take your hat and sunglasses off first.

Bring your paperwork and a pen. If you need an interpreter, tell the registry before the day rather than on it.

The duty lawyer service at 363 George Street

Legal Aid Queensland runs a free duty lawyer service here. It is genuinely useful and it is genuinely limited, so know which side of the line your matter falls on.

A duty lawyer can seek an adjournment, apply for or vary bail, appear on a guilty plea in a less complex matter, deal with a breach of bail or probation, help you obtain your QP9, and speak to the police prosecutor.

A duty lawyer will not run a committal or a trial, will not take on a complex sentence, will not take a first or second drink or drug driving charge unless imprisonment is a real prospect, and generally will not act in traffic matters. They act for that day only.

Ask at the counter as soon as you arrive. Legal Aid Queensland is on 1300 65 11 88.

Late arrivals, non appearance and adjournments

If you are late, ring 1800 325 085 and then get there. Go straight to your courtroom and speak to the bailiff or clerk. Matters are commonly stood down and re-called later in the morning.

If you do not appear at all, the court can deal with a simple offence in your absence under the Justices Act 1886 (Qld) or issue a warrant. If you are on bail, failing to appear is a separate offence under section 33 of the Bail Act 1980 (Qld) and it damages any future bail application.

An adjournment simply moves your matter to a new date, and it is the normal result of a first mention. Write the new date down before you leave the room. If you are on bail it will usually be enlarged to that date on the same conditions.

From there the matter goes one of three ways: a plea and sentence in the Magistrates Court, a summary hearing if you plead not guilty, or a committal to the Brisbane District Court at 415 George Street.