Courts falling behind in wake of Allan’s bail changes

2 months ago 16

Victoria’s tougher bail laws are leaving more criminal cases unresolved, have increased pressure on the Magistrates’ Court and have driven up costs as urgent bail hearings absorb court time.

According to recent data from Court Services Victoria (CSV), the Magistrates’ Court finalised 92 per cent of its criminal cases in 2024-25 – below its 100 per cent benchmark – as magistrates spent more time dealing with bail applications, time that would otherwise have been used to progress and finalise cases.

Police Minister Anthony Carbines, Premier Jacinta Allan and Attorney-General Sonya Kilkenny announcing changes to Victoria’s bail laws on March 12.

In its performance commentary, CSV said the clearance rate for criminal matters disposed of in the Magistrates’ Court was 7.6 per cent lower than expected.

“Recent legislative reforms have increased the number of bail applications; court time has been diverted from case finalisations to prioritise bail matters,” the report said.

The CSV report also showed the average cost per criminal case finalised in the Magistrates’ Court had become more expensive in the last financial year, jumping 17.9 per cent.

Again, CSV linked the outcome to a surge in bail applications following the introduction of tougher bail laws, noting: “The variance between the estimate and the full-year result is due to lower finalisations arising from recent legislative change leading to an increase in bail applications requiring more in-court time.”

Changes to the state’s bail laws, introduced in late 2024 and March 2025 by the Allan government, were designed to strengthen the bail threshold and make it harder for repeat offenders to be granted bail.

Among the changes passed by state parliament last March, the government tightened access to bail for serious crimes including carjacking, home invasion, gun and arson offences. Children accused of serious crimes will also be treated like adults when courts decide whether to grant them bail.

In November, The Age reported that custody cells beneath Melbourne Magistrates’ Court were full, and corrections staff were forced to choose whom to transport in from the state’s police stations and remand centres to face court.

A state government spokesperson said the increase in bail activity had been expected, and that seven new magistrates appointed last month were part of the extra resources being provided to courts to help them work through the caseload.

A prison van leaves the Melbourne Custody Centre.

“Our tough bail laws have made it much harder for offenders to get bail,” the spokesperson said. “This means more applications, including repeat applications after bail, are denied or revoked – this is expected and means our tough bail laws are working.”

Data from the Magistrates’ Court of Victoria’s annual report shows the number of bail application orders decided by a magistrate – including grants, refusals, revocations and variations – increased by 10.5 per cent over the last financial year, from 37,692 in 2023-24 to 41,670 in 2024-25.

The annual report also shows the total number of bail hearings the court had to deal with jumped 28 per cent over the year, driven by sharp increases in refusals and revocations.

While bail refusals climbed 33 per cent from 8471 in 2023-24 to 11,251 in 2024-25, revocations surged 85 per cent (from 3568 to 6612), sending the same accused back before the court multiple times, with urgent hearings displacing scheduled matters and reducing the time available to finalise other criminal cases.

“The Magistrates’ Court of Victoria has observed an increase in bail-related applications following the implementation of legislative bail reform,” a spokesperson for the court said, noting the climb.

“Bail-related applications coming before the court have increased in complexity and therefore the time required to hear these matters.”

Beyond bail, overall criminal demand on the court also continued to rise. The number of new criminal cases initiated increased 8 per cent over the year to 146,322 (up from 135,282 in 2023-24) – the highest level recorded in the past five years, while case finalisations fell 9 per cent to 135,035 after peaking at more than 160,000 in 2022-23.

Some of Victoria’s busiest suburban courts carried particularly heavy loads. Sunshine Magistrates’ Court finalised 13,122 criminal cases, while Broadmeadows finalised 9,874, alongside substantial family-violence intervention order workloads.

In August, the Magistrates’ Court of Victoria launched the Remote Custody Court, an online hub to help fast-track custody hearings and manage court backlogs. The spokesperson said the Magistrates’ Court of Victoria hoped to expand the program in 2026.

Start the day with a summary of the day’s most important and interesting stories, analysis and insights. Sign up for our Morning Edition newsletter.