Fraud

Fraud Offence Lawyers in Melbourne

Have you been charged with dishonesty or fraud related offences? If so, you should talk to a criminal lawyer that specialised in fraud. We have offices in Melbourne, Ringwood, Frankston, Geelong, Ballarat, Moorabbin and Dandenong and have run some of the largest fraud cases tried in Victoria.

What is a Fraud?

Fraud is generally described as deceptive conduct intended to result in some form of personal gain. 

Fraud charges include many facets of dishonest conduct such as, centrelink fraud, procuring sexual acts by fraud, fraudulently inducing a person to invest money, false accounting theft, falsification of documents, obtaining property by deception, money laundering, forgery, bribery and defrauding the Commonwealth.

Protect your record regarding fraud offences

Fraud charges can range from fraudulently obtaining an item of food from the supermarket through to multi-million dollar frauds. For minor dishonesty offences, the penalty itself may not always be a client’s greatest concern. Often it is the severe consequences attached to having a criminal record for dishonesty.

A record for a fraud/dishonesty charges might prevent a client from obtaining the job that they always wanted or have repercussions for their current job. There are many aspects of these cases that should be discussed with a specialist criminal lawyer – particularly how you might avoid any form of criminal record.

Avoid an immediate prison sentence for fraud offences

Serious dishonesty matters will often attract a prison sentence, depending on the circumstances of the case. There are a huge number of relevant factors such as the type of victim, the degree of planning, the method used to obtain the property, whether there has been a breach of trust whilst committing the crime, the amount of the fraud and the nature of the offence itself.

Participating in a record of interview regarding fraud 

If you have been involved in a dishonesty related matter and are about to be interviewed in regard to fraud charges, it is critical that you first seek legal advice from an experienced criminal lawyer in Melbourne.

Anything that you say in that recorded interview can and will be used against you at a later date. If you have been charged you should consult a lawyer with extensive experience in dealing with dishonesty matters, to discuss how to best approach your interview. It will sometimes be in your interests to cooperate with police if the evidence is very strong or you are in a position to put a viable defence on the record, but it more often the case that you should exercise your right to silence and not say anything to police. How you should approach your record of interview is something that needs to be given careful consideration after discussions with a lawyer that understands this area of the law.