Our expert criminal lawyers for drug supply can help you:
- Obtain bail.
- Be found not guilty.
- Receive a lenient sentence, like no conviction and no prison.
You will be represented by a team of award-winning criminal lawyers, with 500+ five-star Google reviews, who offer fixed fees and free first consultations.
You can read our reviews here.
Drug Supply Lawyers
We are the leading criminal lawyers who specialise in drug supply charges, including:
- Small, traffickable, and indictable quantities.
- Commercial and large commercial quantities.
- Deemed supply.
- Supply on an ongoing basis.
We can help you be found not guilty if you defend your drug charges or avoid a conviction and prison if you plead guilty, as well as obtaining bail.
You can read more about first time drug supply charges here.
Pleading guilty
If you plead guilty, our criminal lawyers can help you obtain a lenient sentence for your supply charge.
For example, you can avoid a sentence of imprisonment or have no criminal record by obtaining a section 10 dismissal.
Ways that our criminal lawyers can assist you in preparing your sentence for a drug supply offence include:
- Negotiating with prosecutors for you to plead guilty to less serious facts or a less serious charge.
- Assisting you with references and an apology letter.
- Obtaining psychological and psychiatric reports.
- Directing you to other services, such as drug and alcohol programs, counsellors, psychologists, and psychiatrists.
- Referring you to programs and courses that the courts hold in high regard, like MERIT, SMART Recovery, and the Salvation Army’s Positive Lifestyles Program.
- Helping you collate corroborating documents that show the effect a conviction will have on you, such as employment contracts and travel documents.
- Submitting applications for residential rehabilitation services.
Pleading not guilty to drug supply
The prosecution must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that:
- You supplied, or knowingly took part in the supply,
- The substance was prohibited,
- You knew, believed, or were aware that there was a significant or real chance that the substance was a prohibited drug.
If you plead not guilty, then there are many ways that our criminal lawyers are able to defend your drug supply charge. These include:
- Identification.
- No supply occurred, and the drugs were for personal use.
- Incorrect weight of drugs.
- Illegal search, arrest, or surveillance.
- Drugs belong to someone else.
- For charges of ‘taking part in supply’, you can prove that you weren’t involved in the supply by way of taking any steps in the process, financing or arranging to finance the supply or allowing the offence to happen on-premises.
- Substance is not a prohibited one.
- Duress.
- Necessity.
Why is the weight of the drug so important?
The weight of the drug determines whether your case is a deemed supply. Weight also determines whether the offence is dealt with in the Local Court or the District Court, where there are juries and higher maximum penalties.
The drug weight categories for some common drugs are below:
|
Prohibited Plant/Drug |
Small Qty. |
Trafficable |
Indictable |
Commercial |
Large |
|
Cannabis Leaf |
30g |
300g |
1,000g |
25kg |
100kg |
|
Amphetamine |
1 g |
3.0 g |
5 g |
250.0 g |
1 Kg |
|
Cocaine |
1 g |
3 g |
5 g |
250.0 g |
1 Kg |
|
Heroin |
1 g |
3 g |
5 g |
250.0 g |
1 Kg |
|
Lysergic acid |
0.0008 g |
0.003 g |
0.005 g |
0.5 g |
2 Kg |
|
Methylamphetamine |
1 g |
3 g |
5 g |
250 g |
1 Kg |
|
MDMA/Ecstasy |
0.25 g |
0.75 g |
1.25 g |
125 g |
500 Kg |
The maximum imprisonment terms are outlined as follows:
|
Quantity |
If Local Court |
If District Court |
If District Court + child is exposed in manufacture |
|
Small Qty |
2 years imprisonment and/or $5,500 fine |
15 years imprisonment and/or $220,000 fine If the drug is a cannabis plant or leaf, the maximum penalty is $220,000 and/or 10 years imprisonment |
18-years imprisonment and/or $264,000 fine |
|
Between Small and Commercial Qty |
2 years imprisonment and/or $11,000 fine |
15 years imprisonment and/or $220,000 fine If the drug is cannabis plant or leaf, the maximum penalty is $220,000 and/or 10 years imprisonment |
Same penalties as above |
|
Commercial Qty |
Cannot be dealt with in Local Court |
20 years imprisonment and/or $385,000 fine If the drug is cannabis plant or leaf, the maximum penalty is $385 000 and/or 15 years imprisonment |
25-years imprisonment and/or $462,00 fine |
|
Large Commercial Qty |
Cannot be dealt with in Local Court |
Life imprisonment and/or $550,000 fine If the drug is cannabis plant or leaf, the maximum penalty is $550 000 and/or 20 years’ imprisonment |
Life imprisonment and/or $660,000 fine |
What is deemed supply of prohibited drugs?
If drugs found in your possession weigh more than a certain weight, then you will be charged with supply, even if there is no other evidence you intended to sell the drugs.
If you are charged with deemed supply, you will have to prove to the court that you had the drugs for a purpose other than supplying them.
Do I need references?
We believe references are an extremely important part of a plea of guilty in court. Read about court processes and how to write a good character reference.
Contact Australian Criminal Law Group
Our criminal lawyers, with 500+ five-star Google reviews, can beat a drug supply charge or obtain a lenient sentence for you if you plead guilty.
Call us on (02) 8815 8167 for your free first conference or submit a website enquiry.
Case studies
No conviction recorded
Our lawyer represented a client charged with the commercial supply of 14 grams of cocaine. Our lawyer was able to obtain a s 10, meaning no conviction was recorded.
Intensive correction order
Our lawyer represented a client charged with supplying 5 kilograms of cannabis and dealing in proceeds of crime. Our lawyer was able to obtain an intensive correction order, meaning no jail time.
Bail received
Our lawyer represented a client charged with the large commercial supply of 1000 kilograms of pseudoephedrine. The client had prior charges on his record, including charges for drug supply and firearm offences. Supplying large commercial quantities of drugs like pseudoephedrine is a very serious offence. If found guilty, the client could face a maximum penalty of life imprisonment. Despite the seriousness of the charge and the client’s poor criminal record, our lawyer convinced the court to grant bail. Our lawyers’ compelling bail application included a bed in rehab that he had organised, and the Supreme Court judge described it as “attacking the critical concerns that the court might have”.
Bail received
Our lawyer represented a client charged with commercial supply of cocaine and dealing with $70,000 in proceeds of crime. Additionally, another one of our lawyers represented the co-accused, who was charged with the supply of 3 kilograms of cannabis and dealing with the proceeds of crime. Both of our lawyers were able to obtain bail for the clients.