Guide to Writing Character References

At Emma Turnbull Lawyers, our team of top criminal criminal defence lawyers understand how to prepare your case and provide you with expert guidence to help navigate this difficult process. Our team may request character references for our clients to assist in building their defence.

The purpose of a character reference is to provide the court with greater insight into your personal circumstances and address your attributes. The court is able to gain an impression about our clients through character references and address the question of who our clients are in the context of the offending.

Our criminal defence lawyers understand that character references are valuables tools in achieving the best possible result for our clients.

Personal Character References

1. The character reference should be addressed to “the Presiding Magistrate” (for Magistrates’ Court matters) or “the Presiding Judge” (for County Court matters);
2. It MUST be dated;
3. It MUST state that the person knows you, what relationship they have with you, and for how long they have known you;
4. It MUST state that the person knows of your current legal predicament;
5. It should contain a paragraph detailing their opinion of you and whether or not the offences for which you are facing at Court are “out of character” or not.
6. It can contain a paragraph expressing their personal opinion as to whether you have learnt from your mistakes (only if you are pleading guilty to the charge/s).
7. It MUST be signed.

Employment Character References

1. It must be on the business/company letter head;
2. The character reference should be addressed to “the Presiding Magistrate” (for Magistrates’ Court matters) or “the Presiding Judge” (for County Court matters);
3. It MUST be dated;
4. It MUST state who they are and what position they hold in the business/company;
5. It MUST state that the person knows you, that you are employed with their business, for how long you have been employed with them and your employment position and status (i.e. full time, part time or casual).
6. It MUST state that the person knows of your current legal predicament;
7. It should contain a paragraph detailing their opinion of you and whether or not the offences for which you are facing at Court are “out of character” or not and whether the employer will continue your employment notwithstanding your current legal predicament;
8. It can contain a paragraph expressing their personal opinion as to whether you have learnt from your mistakes (only if you are pleading guilty to the charge/s).
9. It MUST be signed.

It is important to make sure that your character references are legible and that you provide them to your lawyer before the plea date. It is preferable that the reference is typed.