Restitution – recovering awards of compensation from convicted offenders

A victim of an act of violence may be awarded statutory compensation under the provisions of the Victims Support and Rehabilitation Act 1996 for the injury (or injuries) received. The award is paid from the Victims Compensation Fund, which is funded by the NSW Treasury.

Once an award has been made, restitution action may be taken against any person who has been convicted of an offence(s) that led to the compensable injury. The convicted offender may be ordered to pay back all or some of the compensation paid by the Fund to the victim.

When the legislation was before Parliament, the aim of restitution was stated to be one of ensuring that offenders contribute to the assistance of their victims.