Would a defendant be given enough time to have conference with the Duty Lawyer before appearing in court?

A Duty Lawyer may have conference with the defendant prior to the day of hearing if he considers necessary.

    Otherwise, he will have a conference with the defendant on the morning of the day of hearing. In any case, if either the Duty Lawyer or the defendant requires more time to discuss the case before commencing the hearing, the Duty Lawyer will apply to court to have the case stand down so to enable the conference to be continued and usually the court will grant such application.

    A defendant will have enough time to discuss with and seek advice from the Duty Lawyer prior to commencement of the hearing of his case.

    In any event, the defendant will have at least one full interview with the Court Liaison Officer at which full instruction and statement will be taken.