Southport Magistrates Court: what actually happens

Where the building is and how to get in

The courthouse takes up a block in central Southport on the corner of Davenport and Hinze Streets. It opened in 1998 and holds the Magistrates Court, the District Court and a watchhouse in the same complex, which is why it is much bigger than most people expect.

You go through security screening at the entrance and bags go through a scanner. Leave anything that could be treated as a weapon at home, including pocket knives and scissors.

Once you are through, the foyer has screens showing the daily law list. That is your first stop, not the counter.

Parking, and why you should not leave it to 8:45am

There is no public car park at the courthouse. What there is:

• Metered on street parking on the surrounding streets. It fills before 8:15am on a sitting day. A two hour meter is not enough for a mention.
• Paid shopping centre parking in central Southport within a short walk. A better bet if you have a court date rather than a registry errand.
• The G:link light rail, which stops at Nerang Street station. Easier than driving from anywhere between Helensvale and Burleigh Heads.
• From Brisbane, take the train to Helensvale and change to the light rail. Allow well over an hour, more in the morning peak.

If you are disqualified from driving, do not drive to court. Magistrates notice, prosecutors ask, and it is a fresh offence committed in a car park full of police.

Finding your name on the list

Magistrates matters at Southport run across courts 1 to 9. The daily law list tells you which one you are in and what time you are listed. It is published online and on the screens in the foyer.

Read it properly. It is alphabetical by surname, and next to your name is a court number and a time. If your name is not on it, do not assume the date is wrong and go home. Ring 1300 516 700 or ask at the counter. Lists are updated at 6:45am and again at 8:45am, so a matter added overnight may not appear on the version you read over breakfast.

Then go to the courtroom, sit down, and wait. There is no queue and nobody will call your name in the foyer.

What a mention is, and what actually happens at one

Your first appearance is almost always a mention: a short listing where the court checks the state of the matter. It is not a trial. No evidence is heard and nothing is proved.

When your name is called you walk to the bar table area or the microphone, say your name, and stand. The magistrate will typically ask three things: do you have a lawyer, do you have the police brief, and are you pleading guilty or not guilty. If you do not have a lawyer yet, say so and ask for an adjournment to get advice. That request is granted routinely at a first mention.

The whole thing takes two or three minutes. That is normal, not a sign that your matter is being treated as unimportant. A Magistrates Court deals with hundreds of matters a day and the mention system exists to move them through the stages.

You will wait three hours to be dealt with in three minutes. That is not a failure of the system. That is the system.

The one thing to avoid is entering a plea before you have read the police version of events and had advice. A guilty plea is very difficult to take back.

Plan for the whole morning anyway. Represented matters are usually reached earlier; unrepresented matters and anyone waiting on the duty lawyer sit later. Do not book a job at 11:00am and do not park on a two hour meter.

What to wear, what to bring, and your phone

Queensland Courts asks you to dress neatly, and says expressly that you do not have to wear a suit. Clean and covered is the standard. Leave the singlet, the thongs, the hat and the sunglasses. Bring your notice to appear or bail undertaking, any QP9 you have been given, and a pen.

A phone can come into the building but must be switched off in the courtroom, not on silent. No recording or photography. No eating, drinking or gum. Bow your head to the coat of arms behind the bench as you go in and out, stand when the magistrate enters or leaves, and say "Your Honour".

The duty lawyer at Southport

Legal Aid Queensland runs a free duty lawyer service here. If you have no solicitor, ask at the counter as soon as you arrive, because the list is long by 9:00am.

What the duty lawyer will do

• Ask for an adjournment so you can get advice
• Apply for bail, or apply to vary bail conditions
• Appear on a guilty plea in a less complex matter
• Deal with a breach of bail or a breach of probation
• Help you get your QP9, and speak to the prosecutor

What the duty lawyer will not do

• Run a trial or a committal, or take on a complex sentence
• Take a first or second drink or drug driving charge, unless imprisonment is a real prospect
• Take on most traffic matters
• Act for you beyond that day

Legal Aid Queensland is on 1300 65 11 88. If your matter is contested or serious, you need your own lawyer.

If you are late, or you cannot get there

If you are running late, ring 1300 516 700 and tell them, then get there. Do not simply not show up. Under the Justices Act 1886 (Qld) a Magistrates Court can deal with a simple offence in your absence or issue a warrant for your arrest. If you are on bail, failing to appear is itself an offence under section 33 of the Bail Act 1980 (Qld).

If you arrive after your matter has been called, go to the courtroom and speak to the bailiff or clerk. Matters are frequently stood down and re-called later in the morning. A late arrival that is explained is a very different thing to a non appearance.

If you genuinely cannot attend, get a lawyer to appear for you or contact the registry before the listing, not after.

What an adjournment means

An adjournment is the court putting your matter off to another date. It is the normal outcome of a first mention and it is not a bad sign. Common reasons: you need advice, the police brief has not arrived, your lawyer is negotiating with the prosecutor, or you are completing a course before sentence.

You will be given a new date. Write it down before you leave the courtroom. If you are on bail it is usually enlarged to that date on the same conditions, and you must appear.

After the mentions come the real steps: a plea and sentence, a summary hearing if you plead not guilty, or a committal to the Southport District Court if the charge is too serious for a magistrate to finalise.