Media Release - Bail compliance checks in NSW - Final Report

Thursday, 17 April 2025

The Police Commissioner should put a stop to officers conducting bail curfew and residential compliance checks on private property without a prior court order, a new Law Enforcement Conduct Commission report recommends.  

Police have been relying on a weak legal principle to conduct bail compliance checks on private property, leaving the Force open to complaints and claims of trespass if a resident revokes an officer’s implied licence to enter the property, the report reads.

The new watchdog report which followed a public submissions process, recommends that approval for all curfew and residential compliance checks be sought from a court under section 30 of the Bail Act. Police reliance on the doctrine of implied licence for such bail checks should be discontinued.

Current police practice shows that the NSW Police Force do not regularly seek s 30 bail enforcement conditions even in circumstances where it is likely it will conduct routine bail compliance checks.

Chief Commissioner Peter Johnson SC stated:

“The report considers the statutory scheme in the Bail Act 2013 for the enforcement of bail conditions and the controversial practice of reliance by the NSW Police Force on the doctrine of implied licence, and not enforcement conditions under section 30 of the Bail Act, where police enter onto private property to check compliance with curfew and residence conditions.

“The report emphasises the importance of lawfulness and clarity in the exercise of police powers concerning bail. To this end, the Commission recommends reliance by police officers on the available statutory scheme when bail compliance checks are to be undertaken on private property and not the complex, vague and terminable doctrine of implied licence.  

To read or find out more about the Commission’s Bail Compliance Checks in NSW – Final Report please visit the Commission’s website here. A fact sheet about the report can be found here. Prior Commission reports highlighting bail compliance checks referenced in this review, including the Bail Issues Paper, can be found on the publications hub of our website here.

LECC Media

T: 0425 317 535

E: media@lecc.nsw.gov.au