Prisoner

Legal advice

You can talk to a lawyer about your legal problem. You can ask the Functional Manager or Services and Programs Officer (SAPO) at your prison to help you call Legal Aid NSW or your lawyer.

If you need an interpreter, tell us when you call.

If Legal Aid is representing you and you haven't spoken to your lawyer before court, your lawyer may contact you on the morning of court. They may call you or see you in the cells before your case is called.

It is important that you go to all legal conferences with your lawyer before court. This helps you get ready for your case.

To find out when or where your case is listed, use the kiosk function on your tablet or call the Corrective Services Support Line by dialling #1 on the CADL.

Criminal law

If you need advice about parole, prison issues or a criminal law matter, you can book an appointment with a Legal Aid lawyer. To book, dial #2 on the CADL and ask to speak to a criminal lawyer.

If you have a lawyer for your criminal law matter through a grant of legal aid, add their phone number to your phone card so you can call them. Legal Aid cannot transfer your call.

The Parole and Prevention Orders Legal Service (PPO) can help with:

• hearings at the State Parole Authority
• life sentence redeterminations
• segregation appeals
• visiting judge hearings
• high risk offender applications
• parole
• classification
• other prison issues.

PPO lawyers can visit prisoners in all NSW prisons. This can be in person or by video or phone.

For more information, see Parole and Prevention Orders Legal Service.

Family law

Legal Aid NSW offers free legal advice, by appointment, about family law. This includes:

• child protection (when DCJ may remove children)
• adoption
• parenting disputes
• mediation after you are released
• child support
• divorce
• dividing the family home and property when a relationship ends.

To book an appointment, dial #2 on the CADL and ask to book an appointment with a family lawyer. For more information, see My family or relationship.

Civil law

The Prisoners Civil Law Service at Legal Aid NSW (PCLS) gives legal advice and help to people in prison with civil law issues. This includes:

• Centrelink problems
• complaints about government departments
• consumer disputes and debts
• discrimination complaints
• fines and Work and Development Orders (WDOs)
• complaints about healthcare and medication
• housing problems, including social housing, rental disputes and NCAT matters
• victims restitution debts
• victims support payments
• wrongdoing by prison staff or police, including assault, excessive force or false imprisonment.

For more information, see the Prisoners Civil Law Service.

Make a complaint or request a new lawyer

If you have a complaint about a Legal Aid NSW lawyer, or a private lawyer who is representing you on behalf of Legal Aid NSW, call Legal Aid NSW by dialling #2 on the CADL.

If you want to change your lawyer, speak to the Legal Aid Grants Administration team. They will write down your request and talk with you about options. A transfer is not always possible. Tell them why you want to change lawyers. If you can, write your reasons down.

If you have a complaint about how you are being treated by Corrections or Youth Justice:

• call Legal Aid NSW by dialling #2 on the CADL, or
• call the NSW Ombudsman by dialling #8 on the CADL.

If you have an urgent medical complaint, call the Corrective Service Support Line by dialling #1 on the CADL.

Your rights in prison

You have rights when you are in prison. This includes the right to:

• have visitors within prison rules
• send and get letters within prison rules
• get legal information
• get confidential help from a lawyer
• apply for bail and apply again if your situation changes
• present your own evidence and cross-examine witnesses
• ask for a review of your security classification
• ask for a review of your prison placement
• ask for a review of segregation orders
• get medical, dental and mental health care
• join education or training programs, if available and your segregation allows it
• be free from discrimination based on race, gender, sexuality, religion or disability
• make a complaint if you are mistreated
• report a crime to police and get victims support if you are the victim of a sexual or violent crime in prison.

For more information, see Your rights in prison.

Remand

Being on remand means you are held in custody after you have been charged, while you wait for court. If you’ve been charged and you are in custody, you may be able to apply for bail while you wait for your court case. If you want to apply for bail, speak to your lawyer.

When deciding bail, the court may consider things like:

• how serious the offence is
• how strong the prosecution case is
• the risk that you will not return to court
• your ties to the community
• community safety if you are released.

If you get bail, the court may set conditions. For example, you may have to live at a certain address, report to police or follow a curfew. You must follow all bail conditions.

If you do not have an address or your address is outside New South Wales, it may be harder to get bail. You may still be able to apply. For example, you may be able to arrange temporary accommodation while you are on bail.

For more information, see I am in prison on remand.

Fines

If you are in prison, you may be able to ask Revenue NSW to put your overdue fines on hold until you are out of custody.

You will need to fill out an Inmate Request for Information (PDF, 161KB) form. You can get a copy of this from the Forms page on the Revenue NSW website. You can also use this form to ask for copies of your overdue fines. If you want a relative or friend to deal with Revenue NSW for you, complete the ‘authority to act’ section.

Sample: Inmate Request for Information (PDF, 180KB)

If Corrective Services NSW tells Revenue NSW you are in custody, Revenue NSW will usually stop debt recovery action, unless there are exceptional circumstances.

If your application is accepted, other penalties from the fine (like a licence suspension) may still apply.

For more information, see What if I do nothing?

Parole

Parole means you may be released from prison after you have served your non-parole period. You then serve the rest of your sentence in the community. Whether you get parole depends on your sentence and other factors. If you have questions about parole, call Legal Aid NSW by dialling #2 on the CADL and ask to speak to a criminal lawyer.

If you are released on parole, you must follow your parole conditions.

If you are serving less than three years in prison, you will be automatically released on statutory parole by the court when your non-parole period expires. The only situation where this might not occur is when the State Parole Authority (SPA) revokes your parole prior to your release. This is rare. It can only happen if:

1. there has been a substantial change in circumstances, or
2. the SPA believes you are a serious risk to the community or yourself that cannot be addressed by the directions of NSW Community Corrections, where there has been a substantial change in circumstances, or
3. you request it.

If you are serving more than three years and one day in prison, SPA will decide whether to grant you parole.

For more information, see Parole.

The Child Protection Register

The Child Protection Register (CPR) is a confidential database maintained by NSW Police. It records the names of people who have been found guilty of certain sexual offences against a child, or for the kidnapping, manslaughter or murder of a child. These offences are called Registrable Offences. The CPR helps police monitor these individuals to protect children and prevent further harm.

If you are sentenced for a Registrable Offence, the court that sentences you must make orders under the relevant CPR laws when sentencing you. The court must specify what the conditions of the order are, as well as the length of time that you are subject to the orders. The court must also give you a copy of the order.

People on the CPR must follow strict rules, like reporting to police and giving the police personal details like where you live and work. You must ensure this information is always up to date.

It is important that you read the orders that you are given and understand what you must do to avoid breaching the orders. Breaching your CPR orders is a criminal offence that can be punished by a fine, up to 5 years' prison or both. If you are unsure about what your orders mean, you can speak to a lawyer from Legal Aid NSW. To do this, dial #2 on the CADL and ask to speak to a criminal lawyer.

For more information, see The Child Protection Register and Protection Orders.

Last updated: June 2026