Articles

Key takeaways

• Only police can apply for an AVO against a child
• If police apply for an AVO against a child, the court will want the child to engage in some sort of treatment to address the cause of the issues
• A specialist AVO lawyer can negotiate with police to withdraw an AVO

An apprehended violence order (AVO) can be applied for against a child by police.

An AVO is a civil order and is not a criminal record. However, breaching an AVO is a criminal offence, which carries a maximum penalty of 2 years imprisonment and/or a $5,500 fine.

It can also affect obtaining employment in certain areas.

Can you get an AVO against a child?

Only police can apply for an apprehended violence order (AVO) against a child. If a private citizen wishes to make an application for an AVO against a child, they cannot apply for a private AVO themselves. They must go through the police.

An applicant who is 16 years of age or over, but under 18 years of age, is able to make an application or apply for a variation or revocation of an AVO pursuant to section 48(6) of the Children and Young Persons (Care and Protection) Act 1998.

However, a private citizen can apply for a child to be added to an AVO they have applied for to protect themselves. In this case, the court may refer the AVO application to the Commissioner of Police if it considers it would be in the best interests of the child for a police officer to appear in the application (see section 48(4A) of the Crimes (Domestic and Personal Violence) Act 2007).

How to respond to an AVO against a child?

If you are a child (ie. Under the age of 18 years) and have been served with an application for an AVO, you will be given a court date in the Children’s Court. There are a number of options on how to deal with the AVO which include:

• requesting an adjournment to get legal advice
• agree to get counselling or treatment
• agree to mediation
• consenting to an Interim AVO for a set period of time
• consenting to a Final AVO
• opposing the AVO

You will need to get legal advice from a specialist children’s AVO lawyer in order to determine what course is best for your case.

First court date

On the first court date, the courtroom will be closed for your case. This means that embers of the general public are not allowed inside the Children’s Court. You will be allowed to have your lawyer present in court as well as your parents or other support person. 

The first question the Judge will deal with is what caused police to apply for the AVO and what can be done to address that issue. A specialist psychologist or counsellor who is experienced in Children’s Court cases can be engaged to perform an assessment and provide a report with a recommended treatment plan.

If the report is adequate and addresses relevant matters under the Children and Young Persons (Care and Protection) Act 1998 as well as the Crimes (Domestic and Personal Violence) Act 2007, your lawyer may be able to negotiate for the withdrawal of the AVO.

If you have not obtained legal advice or engaged in treatment before the court date, the Judge may require a court support officer (CSO) to assess the child.

If negotiations are successful with police and a suitable treatment plan is in place, the court can impose an interim AVO and adjourn the case for 3 months to allow the child to engage in that treatment.

If there are no suitable counselling services or other intervention services available, or the child does not want to engage with these, the court can still impose an interim AVO and adjourn the case for 5 months.

If there is no breach of the AVO during this period, the police can be persuaded to withdraw the AVO.

In the event that police are not willing to withdraw the AVO, the case will be set for a hearing. This will require the child as well as any witnesses in the case to give evidence in court and be cross-examined. There will also be orders for the filing of evidence by police and the child.

How long does a children’s AVO last?

If an Interim or Final AVO is made against a child, the order last for one year or another period of time specified by the court.

Withdrawing an Apprehended Violence Order

Only police can withdraw an application for an AVO. This means that even if the person(s) the AVO is to protect doesn’t want it, your lawyer will still need to convince police to withdraw it.

This is a common situation where police apply for an AVO against a child for the protection of the child’s parents. Even if the child’s parents do not want the AVO, the police will continue with the application unless they can be persuaded there are good reasons to withdraw it.  

How to vary an AVO against a child?

An application can be made to vary or revoke an Interim or Final AVO by the defendant, the police or the protected person. You can read a step by step guide on how to vary an AVO.

Appealing an AVO against a child

If the court makes a final AVO against a child, you can appeal this decision to the District Court within 28 days.

It is important to note that the AVO will remain in place while the appeal is pending unless you apply to the Court for an order to ‘stay’ the AVO. The Court will only make an order if it will not affect the safety of the protected person or any other person.

Support services

If you are in an URGENTLY unsafe situation you may want to call:

132 111 – Child Protection Helpline

1800 656 463 – Domestic Violence Line or

1800 55 1800 – Kids Helpline

000 – Call triple 0 for police or ambulance