Section 23G — Crimes Act 1914: Right to communicate with friend, relative and legal practitioner

(1) Subject to section 23L, if a person is under arrest or a protected suspect, an investigating official must, before starting to question the person, inform the person that he or she may: (a) communicate, or attempt to communicate, with a friend or relative to inform that person of his or her whereabouts; and (b) communicate, or attempt to communicate, with a legal practitioner of the person’s choice and arrange, or attempt to arrange, for a legal practitioner of the person’s choice to be present during the questioning; and the investigating official must defer the questioning for a reasonable time to allow the person to make, or attempt to make, the communication and, if the person has arranged for a legal practitioner to be present, to allow the legal practitioner to attend the questioning. (2) Subject to section 23L, if a person is under arrest or a protected suspect and wishes to communicate with a friend, relative or legal practitioner, the investigating official must: (a) as soon as practicable, give the person reasonable facilities to enable the person to do so; and (b) in the case of a communication with a legal practitioner—allow the legal practitioner or a clerk of the legal practitioner to communicate with the person in circumstances in which, as far as practicable, the communication will not be overheard. (3) Subject to section 23L, if a person is under arrest or a protected suspect and arranges for a legal practitioner to be present during the questioning, the investigating official must: (a) allow the person to consult with the legal practitioner in private and provide reasonable facilities for that consultation; and (b) allow the legal practitioner to be present during the questioning and to give advice to the person, but only while the legal practitioner does not unreasonably interfere with the questioning.