Queensland Consolidated Acts

YOUTH JUSTICE ACT 1992 - SECT 35

35 Convening conference

(1) The conference may be convened only if—

(a) the child and the convenor attend the conference; and

(b) there is a degree of victim participation in the conference through—

(i) the attendance of the victim or a representative of the victim; or

(ii) the use of pre-recorded communication recorded by the victim for use in the conference; or

(iii) a representative of an organisation that advocates on behalf of victims of crime.

(2) The convenor is responsible for convening the conference and must be independent of the circumstances of the offence.

(3) The conference must be directed towards making a conference agreement.

(4) If the child is not legally represented at the conference, the convenor must ensure the child—

(a) is informed of the right to obtain legal advice; and

(b) has reasonable information about how to obtain legal advice and a reasonable opportunity to do so.

(5) The conference ends when a conference agreement is made or the convenor brings the conference to an end because—

(a) the child fails to attend the conference as required; or

(b) the child denies committing the offence at the conference; or

(c) the convenor concludes a participant’s conduct or failure will result in a conference agreement being unlikely to be made; or

(d) the convenor concludes a conference agreement is unlikely to be made within a time the convenor considers appropriate.

(6) If the conference ends without a conference agreement but the convenor considers it is worthwhile persisting with efforts to make a conference agreement, the convenor may convene another conference.