Tag: chris nyst
  • Chris Nyst, Criminal Law

Can Police Just Randomly Stop and Search Me?

At festivals like Splendour in the Grass and Greazefest, music lovers have become accustomed to seeing police routinely searching people suspected of having drugs in their possession. In certain circumstances police are entitled to do that, but it’s not just open season. Police are not entitled to just randomly stop and search people for no good reason. Unless a police officer has an actual search warrant, then they’re not entitled to detain and search a person except where they suspect on reasonable grounds that person has drugs in their possession.
  • Chris Nyst, Litigation, Sport

The Candyman Can

Our perhaps most flamboyant and controversial client, the Gold Coast’s own Candyman, tobacco franchising supremo Mr Travers Beynon, had a win this week in the Supreme Court when Justice James Douglas froze $250,000 in sponsorship funds paid by his company Freechoice Australia to the Lucas Dumbrell V8 racing team, ahead of this weekend’s Townsville 400. As well, Justice Douglas ordered the Dumbrell team to remove the Candyman’s decals from its cars and account for all of their assets ahead of a major damages action launched by Freechoice, to be heard later this year.
  • Criminal Law, Technology

Trolls Beware

The Australian justice system has at last stomped decisively into the 21st century, striking out at online bullying and harassment. Following the first Commonwealth criminal prosecution of its kind last week, a young man entered a plea of guilty to a charge laid against him by AFP investigators in relation to a series of offensive comments he had posted online regarding a photo of a woman’s Tinder profile that one of his friends had posted on Facebook. It has been reported the man posted some 50 disparaging attacks on the photo, including rape threats and other derogatory and threatening comments. Following his plea of guilty, he was remanded to be sentenced later this year, and could face up to 3 years imprisonment.
  • 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.
  • Chris Nyst, Opinion, Politics

American Pie

Something crazy is happening in America right now. Crazy, and eerily familiar. As the left and right of US politics fight their perennial good fight, waging familiar and well-worn party-political warfare on the hustings, the man in middle, the average American, lays awake nights worrying it’s all going down the toilet in a hurry, praying for a messiah who will lead him from the wilderness, but fearing he will never come, because no one is listening and no one really cares. Then, just when it’s least expected, along comes a maverick with a crazy hair-do and a ton of front, who steps up onto a soap box and smashes all the taboos keeping Average John awake at night, saying the things he would have said himself except everyone kept telling him that kind of stuff was way off limits and not to be spoken of in public.
  • Employment Law, Jonathan Nyst

Fair Enough

"That’s not fair.” My client’s assessment was spot-on, and more than a little ironic, given he was referring to the Fair Work Act. Like justice, fairness can be an elusive concept. I had just finished explaining to my client a few home truths about Fair Work claims. The former employee he had dismissed for incompetence and repeated failure to show up to work was seeking damages for wrongful dismissal. In my view there was absolutely no merit in the claim, and I was confident we would win in court. But the exercise would still be an expensive one for my client. Even if you win a Fair Work claim, the Act precludes reimbursement of a litigant’s costs unless they can show the other party acted vexatiously or unreasonably. Which means claimants often have everything to gain and nothing to lose, even if their claim fails.
  • Chris Nyst, Criminal Law, Domestic Violence

Between Main and Dessert

“So what did you think of the Baden-Clay decision?” It was the question I’d been dreading all night. As soon as it hit the dinner table seven pairs of accusing eyes turned my way, waiting for the slightest slip-up. “Well…”
  • 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, Criminal Law, Politics

“Kelly” MacGroarty RIP

This week saw the passing of my very dear friend and mentor Kelly Macgroarty, one of Queensland’s greatest criminal law defence barristers of any era. Born Neil Joseph Macgroarty 81 years ago, he inherited the tag "Kelly" from his father Neil Francis Macgroarty, himself a distinguished Brisbane barrister who served as Queensland Attorney General in the Moore government of the 20's and 30's.
  • Chris Nyst, Criminal Law, Human Rights, Opinion

A Very Big Call

I was surprised to read this week former Immigration Minister Philip Ruddock's comment that it is unlikely proposed anti-terror laws would see an Australian deported before their appeal is heard. Some years back a client of mine was deported to the UK by ministerial direction pursuant to section 501 of the Immigration Act. He had come to Australia with his family as a child, and was in his 20s when he was convicted of a criminal offence.
  • Chris Nyst, Criminal Law, International, Opinion, Politics

A Crisis Of Credibility

Sadly, there is a growing sense of inevitability surrounding impending execution of Bali Nine members Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran. The political rhetoric continues, but most Australians sense the Indonesians just aren't listening.
  • Criminal Law, Domestic Violence, Family Law

A Call To All Good Men – Stop Domestic Violence

It’s high time for good men to stand up and do something about domestic violence. Last year domestic violence was the leading cause of death and injury in women under 45 in this country. It reportedly accounted for 40 per cent of police time, and cost the economy $13.6 billion. The Easter period alone marked the death of six women and children in a single week. This year, which is not yet two months old, we have already seen 14 Australian women allegedly killed by domestic violence. If that figure runs true, we are online for the shocking statistic of two domestic violence related deaths per week in 2015. That represents a 100% increase in such crimes since last year. It underscores what campaigners have long warned, that domestic violence is at risk of reaching epidemic proportions in Australia.