Category: Opinion
  • Chris Nyst, International, Opinion, Sport

How Sweet It Is

As a longtime lover of the ‘Sweet Science’, I felt a secret sense of satisfaction in watching the measured way in which Floyd “Money" Mayweather defeated the game and garrulous UFC world champion Conor McGregor on the weekend, with an emphatic TKO in the 10th round of their scheduled 12-round bout in Las Vegas Nevada.
  • Criminal Law, Opinion

Doli Incapax – Youngest Offender Ever Charged With Murder

In the early hours of the morning following Australia Day last year, 26 year old Patrick Slater was found dead in a Perth railway station, a 25cm chest wound had penetrated his aorta and both lungs. Last week, in the WA Supreme Court, five young adults and one teenager were found guilty of his murder. But not all those allegedly involved in the incident actually went on trial. The youngest – just 11 years of age at the time – remains in legal limbo, awaiting his fate. At that tender age, he achieves the unenviable record of being the youngest person ever to be charged with murder in Australia.
  • Chris Nyst, Criminal Law, Dispute Resolution, Litigation, Opinion

The Man On The Clapham Omnibus

Lawyers are well acquainted with the Reasonable Man. After all, he’s each and every one of us, although in truth none of us at all. He’s everyone and no one, the theoretical mean of human mores, the universal yardstick of all that’s fair and reasonable.
  • Chris Nyst, Criminal Law, Entertainment, International, Opinion

The Education Of Amasa

The Bible tells us that the sinner Saul was struck down on the road to Damascus. In a sudden flash of light from heaven, he experienced a divine, life-changing epiphany. For most of us the getting of wisdom follows an infinitely more gradual and circuitous path.
  • Chris Nyst, Criminal Law, Hollywood, Opinion

Stool Pigeons & G Men

G men love stoolies. It’s a fact of life. Over the centuries, the one thing that has most frustrated the work of ‘government guys’ – the regulators of all shapes and sizes, the G men, the Jacks, the fuzz, the heat, the traps, the Johnny Hoppers, federalies, wallopers, flatfoots, boys in blue, whatever you want to call them – the one thing that has most frustrated their valiant efforts to rein in the miscreant criminal milieu has been the unshakeable conspiracy of silence that has long existed between partners in crime.
  • Chris Nyst, Opinion, Property

Boom Town

When I was a kid my brothers and I used to watch those corny old black-and-white midday matinee movies on TV, and one of my favourites was an action adventure called “Boom Town”. It starred Clark Gable and Spencer Tracey as “Big John” Masters and “Square John” Sands, a couple of handsome wildcatters chancing their luck on the California oil fields. Together they carve out an empire in a rollicking western town where the saloons are overflowing with cowboys and dancing girls, and everyone is prospecting for something.
  • Brendan Nyst, Criminal Law, International, Opinion

Trial of the Century

I was just a kid when OJ was publicly apprehended by the LAPD. I knew little of the man known as ‘The Juice’, and had no understanding of his place in the psyche of 20th century USA. I had no idea he was so revered by the American public, or why, and had no inkling of the bloodshed that had defined LA’s racial divide in the decades preceding the case. I merely saw another celebrity on trial.
  • Chris Nyst, Opinion, Sport

Ali RIP

Over the weekend, a great hero passed away. Muhammad Ali was not just a giant of the sport of boxing, he was one of the most influential characters 20th century, one whose dynamic personality was an integral part of the winds of change that swept through the post-war period.
  • Brendan Nyst, Litigation, Opinion, Politics

Big Dog Says “Goodnight” – Queensland Lockout Laws

The hottest of hot topics in this state for the past couple of weeks has been the government’s push to implement stricter lockout laws, and tighten the rules around sales and service of alcohol. Premier Palaszczuk has made clear her willingness to die in the ditch over the issue, and without doubt her declared motives for so doing are admirable. She’s determined to reduce the instance of alcohol-fuelled violence on our streets, and who could argue against that?
  • Opinion

Ocean Road Magazine Summer Issue 2016 – Chris Nyst Interview

I am thrilled to see that the current 2016 Summer Issue of the prominent lifestyle publication Ocean Road Magazine features as its cover story our own founder and principal Chris Nyst. Ocean Road is a high quality quarterly publication that celebrates the many wonderful aspects of the Gold Coast region – it's fabulous restaurants and fashion outlets, inspiring architecture, world-class events, unparalleled lifestyle and, not least of all, its incredible characters, of whom Chris is certainly one. The publishers have done a terrific job of showcasing Chris's life and achievements, and it is well worth a read. You can check it out at by clicking here.
  • Chris Nyst, International, Opinion, Politics

The Hero Of Palmyra

The armed militants of Daesh, pillaging and plundering their way across the Middle East, proclaim themselves heroes of Islam. But heroes come in all shapes and sizes.
  • Chris Nyst, Criminal Law, International, Opinion

New Fix For Serial Junkies

If you're hooked, as I am, on the phenomenally popular podcast, Serial, crank up those earphones and get ready for a new round of infuriating twists and turns.