Under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 (Cth), a stay of examination and forfeiture proceedings will not be granted merely because the applicant faces a risk of self-incrimination where no criminal charges have been laid. A stay of examination proceedings is premature where neither the Court has exercised its discretion under s 180 to make the examination order nor an approved examiner has given notice under s 183. A stay of forfeiture proceedings is inappropriate where it would effectively require the Director to elect between criminal proceedings and forfeiture, as this is inconsistent with the statutory scheme. The McMahon v Gould guidelines for staying civil proceedings pending criminal proceedings may give insufficient weight to the privilege against self-incrimination but were not reconsidered in this statutory context.
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