Hi there. In Victoria, when a court imposes a penalty on a person who has been found guilty of an offence, the court can decide to impose an ‘adjourned undertaking’. This means the offender must promise to the court that he or she will be of good behaviour – and abide by any other special conditions the court imposes – for the duration of the undertaking. An undertaking may last for up to five years. If a person breaches the conditions of an adjourned undertaking, he or she must return to court to be re-sentenced. Adjourned undertakings are commonly referred to as good behaviour bonds or orders.

‘Good behaviour’ means the offender must not commit any further offences. If your good behaviour bond does not contain any special conditions, you are simply required to not break the law in any way for the duration of the bond. Communicating with the victim of your offence is not likely to break the law (and therefore the conditions of the bond), provided your communication is not of a nature that would constitute another offence. For example, some types of harassing or overly-frequent communication may amount to the crime of stalking, and some offensive or obscene communication may break laws regarding decency or antisocial online conduct.

If, in addition to a good behaviour bond, a person is subject to a personal safety intervention order or family violence intervention order, it is very likely that contact with the victim is not allowed. Types of permissible behaviour are specified in the terms of the intervention order.

Suggested way forward

If you are unsure whether your communications with the victim are allowed under the good behaviour bond, you should first speak to a lawyer about your legal rights and the best course of action. By pressing the “Consult a Lawyer” button, LawAdvisor can help you search for experienced lawyers and obtain fee proposals for their services. Costs for legal advice and representation will vary between providers based on experience and the scope of services.