If you’ve been served with a Notice of Immediate Suspension in Victoria, you’re likely feeling confused, stressed, and wondering what your options are. Immediate suspensions can severely impact your livelihood, especially if you rely on your licence for work or family responsibilities.

At Elbob & Stephenson Legal, our experienced traffic and criminal lawyers understand how disruptive these suspensions can be, and we’re here to help you explore whether an appeal under section 85S of the Road Safety Act 1986 may apply to your case.

What Is a Notice of Immediate Suspension?

A Notice of Immediate Suspension is issued when a driver commits certain serious offences. It authorises Victoria Police or VicRoads to suspend your driver’s licence on the spot, before you have your day in Court.

This type of suspension can be imposed for:

These suspensions take effect immediately and can remain in place until your matter is finalised in Court, which can take months.

What Is Section 85S of the Road Safety Act?

Section 85S of the Road Safety Act 1986 (VIC) allows a person who has received a notice of immediate suspension to apply to the Magistrates’ Court for an order setting aside the suspension.

This is commonly referred to as a section 85S appeal.

How Does an Appeal Under Section 85S Work?

You can file an application to the Magistrates’ Court seeking to have the suspension lifted while your case is ongoing. The Court will consider:

It’s important to understand that this is not an appeal of the charge itself — only the suspension. Your underlying drink driving or drug driving offence will still proceed separately through the court system.

What Are Your Chances of Success?

These applications are not easy to win. The Court generally leans towards protecting public safety, particularly in drink driving, drug driving, or dangerous driving matters.

However, in some cases, especially where the offending is borderline or where a person can demonstrate significant hardship or mitigating circumstances, the Court may lift the suspension pending final hearing.

This is where a skilled criminal and traffic lawyer can make all the difference. At Elbob & Stephenson Legal, we carefully prepare every 85S application with strong supporting material to give our clients the best chance of success.

What If You Drive While Suspended?

Be warned, driving while suspended is a criminal offence. If you’re caught behind the wheel during a suspension period, you could face:

If you’ve been suspended, do not drive unless and until the suspension is lifted by the Court.

Why Choose Elbob & Stephenson Legal?

We are a boutique law firm specialising in criminal and traffic matters, with a strong track record of helping clients navigate licence suspensions, drink/drug driving offences, and court appearances across Victoria, New South Wales, and Queensland.

Our clients come to us because we’re:

If you’ve received a Notice of Immediate Suspension and want to explore your options under section 85S of the Road Safety Act, contact us today.