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May 2026reviewed
In detail
How unacceptable risk works in practice.
Unacceptable risk is the key concept in the Bail Act 1977 (Vic). In deciding bail, the court considers whether the accused poses an unacceptable risk of failing to appear at court, committing an offence while on bail, endangering the safety or welfare of any person, or interfering with witnesses or otherwise obstructing the course of justice. If such a risk exists and cannot be sufficiently reduced by bail conditions, bail must be refused. For some offences the accused must first satisfy a threshold test before the unacceptable risk question is reached. A bail application is built around addressing the identified risks and proposing conditions that meet the court's concerns.
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