Lawyer Peter Payne charged with perverting the course of justice

A lawyer from NSW’s Central West has been immediately suspended from practising law after police charged him with a serious offence. His lawyer signalled his intention to fight the charge in court.

Cobar lawyer Peter Payne has been charged with perverting the course of justice. Picture: Peter Payne Law

A lawyer from NSW’s Central West has been suspended from practising law after he was charged with intending to pervert the course of justice in relation to a former client.

Peter Payne, 60, has been charged with doing an act or making an omission with the intention of perverting the course of justice after a probe by NSW Police’s Central North Criminal Investigations unit.

Police will allege Payne instructed his client, a man identified as Jay Betcke, not to attend court with the intention to pervert the course of justice. Mr Betcke is not accused of any wrongdoing.

The incident is alleged to have occurred at Nyngan in the state’s Central West between October 27 and October 28 in 2021.

Payne has pleaded not guilty to the charge and is set to face a hearing at Downing Centre Local Court on September 11.

The Downing Centre Courts. Picture: Nikki Short

The hearing has been designated as a special fixture to ensure a presiding magistrate who is not familiar with Payne in his professional capacity as a practising lawyer can be assigned to the matter.

The court heard telephone intercepts will form part of the prosecution’s case, along with one witness.

The matter will next be mentioned on August 17.

An entry in the Office of the Legal Services Commissioner’s Register of Disciplinary Action indicates Payne has had his practising certificate suspended by the Council of the NSW Law Society because he “has been charged with a serious offence”.