Prosecution Statistics

During 2021-22 financial year, we received over 2081 new referrals from 46 referring agencies, this includes 34 Commonwealth investigative agencies and 12 state and territory agencies.

The following tables set out details of prosecutions we conducted in 2021-2022.

Table 1: Outcomes of successful prosecutions in 2021-22
Description No.
Defendants convicted of offences prosecuted summarily 806
Defendants convicted of offences prosecuted on indictment 615
Defendants committed for trial or sentence 688
Table 2: Summary prosecutions in 2021-22
Description No.
Defendants convicted after a plea of guilty 730
Defendants convicted after a plea of not guilty 15
Defendants convicted ex parte 61
Total defendants convicted 806
Defendants acquitted after a plea of not guilty 12
Total 818
Table 3: Committals in 2021-22
Description No.
Defendants committed after a plea of guilty 360
Defendants committed after a plea of not guilty 328
Total defendants committed 688
Defendants discharged after a plea of not guilty 2
Total 690
Table 4: Prosecutions on indictment in 2021-22
Description No.
Defendants convicted after a plea of guilty 586
Defendants convicted after a plea of not guilty 29
Total defendants convicted 615
Defendants acquitted after a plea of not guilty 23
Total 638
Table 5: Prosecution appeals against sentence in 2021-22
Appeal type Outcome Summary Indictable
Appeals against sentence Upheld N/A 5
  Dismissed N/A 2
Total   N/A 7

 

Table 6: Defence appeals in 2021-22
Appeal type Outcome Summary Indictable
Against conviction only Upheld 2 5
  Dismissed 2 9
Against sentence only Upheld 25 23
  Dismissed 10 20
Conviction and sentence Upheld 1 5
  Dismissed 2 3
Total   42 65

 

The following tables provide statistics covering relevant legislation and referring agencies in relation to matters dealt with in 2021-22

Table 7: Legislation under which charges were dealt with summarily and on indictment in 2019-20
Legislation Summary
(Charges)		 Indictable
(Charges)

A New Tax System (Family Assistance) (Administration) Act 1999 (Cth)

 36 0

Anti-Money Laundering and Counter Terrorism Financing Act 2006 (Cth)

 8 8

Australian Citizenship Act 2007 (Cth)

 5 0

Australian Passports Act 2005 (Cth)

 3 23

Australian Securities and Investments Commission Act 2001 (Cth

 4 2

Autonomous Sanctions Act 2011 (Cth)

 0 1

Aviation Transport Security Act 2004 (Cth)

 3 0

Aviation Transport Security Regulations 2005 (Cth)

 8 0

Bankruptcy Act 1966 (Cth)

 137 18

Biosecurity Act 2015 (Cth)

 0 5

Census and Statistics Act 1905 (Cth)

 25 0

Charter of the United Nations Act 1945 (Cth)

 0 1

Child Support (Registration and Collection) Act 1988 (Cth)

 1 0

Civil Aviation Act 1988 (Cth)

 6 1

Civil Aviation Regulations 1988 (Cth)

 19 0

Civil Aviation Safety Regulations 1998 (Cth)

 20 0

Competition and Consumer Act 2010 (Cth)

 0 94

Corporations (Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander) Act 2006 (Cth)

 2 70

Corporations Act 2001 (Cth)

 138 107

Crimes (Aviation) Act 1991 (Cth)

 4 5

Crimes (Currency) Act 1981 (Cth)

 33 10

Crimes Act 1914 (Cth)

 11 50

Criminal Code (Cth)

 2500 2798

Customs Act 1901 (CI) (Cth)

 6 0

Customs Act 1901 (Cth)

 117 100

Defence Act 1903 (Cth)

 29 0

Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (Cth)

 3 0

Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Regulations 2000 (Cth)

 1 0

Excise Act 1901 (Cth)

 1 0

Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth)

 2 3

Fisheries Management Act 1991 (Cth)

 1 0

Foreign Passports (Law Enforcement and Security) Act 2005 (Cth)

 0 1

Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Act 1975 (Cth)

 24 0

Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Regulations 2019 (Cth)

 43 0

Health Insurance Act 1973 (Cth)

 1 1

Industrial Chemicals Act 2019 (Cth)

 2 0

Marine Safety (Domestic Commercial Vessel) National Law Act 2012 (Cth)

 20 0

Maritime Transport and Offshore Facilities Security Act 2003 (Cth)

 1 0

Migration Act 1958 (Cth)

 17 84

National Consumer Credit Protection Act 2009 (Cth)

 7 0

National Vocational Education and Training Regulator Act 2011 (Cth)

 4 0

Passports Act 1938 (Cth)

 3 0

Protection of the Sea (Prevention of Pollution from Ships) Act 1983 (Cth)

 4 0

Public Order (Protection of Persons and Property) Act 1971 (Cth)

 35 0

Quarantine Act 1908 (Cth)

 0 1

Radiocommunications Act 1992 (Cth)

 1 0

Social Security (Administration) Act 1999 (Cth)

 9 0

Social Security Act 1991 (Cth)

 25 0

Statutory Declarations Act 1959 (Cth)

 0 1
 

Taxation Administration Act 1953 (Cth)

 249 8

Therapeutic Goods Act 1989 (Cth)

 77 70

Tobacco Plain Packaging Act 2011 (Cth)

 4 0

Torres Strait Fisheries Act 1984 (Cth)

 2 0

Trade Marks Act 1995 (Cth)

 0 4

Trespass on Commonwealth Lands Ordinance 1932 (Cth)

 11 0

Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (Cth)

 9 0

Non Commonwealth Legislation

 339 453
Total 4010 3919
Table 8: Referring agencies: defendants dealt with and on indictment in 2021–22
Agency Summary Indictable
Australian Border Force 26 43
Australian Bureau of Statistics 6 0
Australian Commission for Law Enforcement Integrity  3 2
Australian Communications and Media Authority  0 0
Australian Competition and Consumer Commission 0 9
Australian Federal Police 190 371
Australian Financial Security Authority  117 6
Australian Fisheries Management Authority  1 0
Australian Maritime Safety Authority  17 0
Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority 1 0
Australian Securities and Investments Commission 37 21
Australian Skills Quality Agency 1 0
Australian Taxation Office 29 20
Civil Aviation Safety Authority 4 1
Clean Energy Regulator 1 0
COMCARE 7 0
Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment 3 3
Department of Defence 3 1
Department of Education, Skills and Employment 5 4
Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade 3 1
Department of Health 8 6
Department of Home Affairs 0 2
Department of Social Services 4 0
Department of Veterans' Affairs 0 1
Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority 52 0
National Disability Insurance Agency 0 2
Office of the Registrar of Indigenous Corporations 0 2
Services Australia 8 0
Services Australia – Centrelink 360 42
Services Australia – Child Support Agency 1 0
Services Australia – Medicare 61 1
Therapeutic Goods Administration 3 2
Non Commonwealth Agencies 183 315
Total 1,135 855

‘Defendants dealt with’ includes not only convictions and findings of guilt, but also: matters resulting in acquittals; prosecutions that are discontinued in accordance with the Prosecution Policy of the Commonwealth based on evidentiary or public interest considerations; discontinuances as part of a charge negotiation; when a matter scheduled for trial resolves into a guilty plea; when there is a hung jury; a warrant has been issued and the defendant has absconded; and determinations that a defendant is unfit to be tried. It also includes matters where a charge is issued but is unable to be served, and prosecutions commenced in one jurisdiction and recommenced in another because a defendant has moved. It does not include: matters where the CDPP has provided pre brief advice to an investigative agency; brief assessments that do not proceed to prosecution on evidentiary or public interest grounds; breach proceedings; or matters determined on appeal.