Summary Offences in Victoria

A summary offence is one that is heard at your local Magistrate’s Court. You should seek a lawyer who has experience in the Magistrate’s Court to get you the best outcome possible.

A summary offence has a maximum penalty of two years prison or a fine no more than 240 penalty units (unless otherwise prescribed in legislation). There are many of these types of offences within the Summary Offences Act 1966 and the Road Safety Act 1986.

Summary offences differ from indictable offences held at the County and Supreme Court. From time to time, however, some indictable offences may be heard in the Magistrate’s Court, and conversely, some summary offences may be heard at the County or Supreme Courts. Summary offences are not treated the same as indictable offences, in particular when it comes to admissions and the powers of arrest.

Admissions
In a summary offence, admissions do not have to be recorded to be admitted as evidence, which means if there is an admission of guilt or wrongdoing at any time, it still counts. This makes a difference when discussing powers of arrest.

When a summary offence has the power of arrest attached…
A caution must be provided against self-incrimination when a suspect is in custody (which has specific rules attached when ‘in custody’ actually applies), and some offences, whether indictable or summary, can cause one to be arrested.

Where a power of arrest doesn’t exist (for some summary offences), police should still provide a caution against self-incrimination. These circumstances include when an investigating officer believes that an offence has been disclosed.

Summary offences are considered less serious than indictable charges, but they can still seriously impact on your ability to live normally – financially, with a criminal record, or otherwise. Pleading guilty can cause you plenty of problems, so if you have been charged with a summary offence and must go to Court, it’s important that you get good advice to protect your future.

You can see the Summary Offences Act 1966 for Victoria, which details the sorts of behaviour that results in summary offences charges.

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