BarristerAI brings comparable sentences into legal research
BarristerAI
Find comparable sentences, obtain a sentencing range, prepare a table of comparable offending, and draft advices and submissions on sentence
SYDNEY, 5 November 2026 - BarristerAI has developed sentencing research tools that help Australian barristers and solicitors find comparable sentencing decisions, examine why sentences were imposed, and compare them with a client’s matter. The tools do four things: find comparable cases, advise on sentence including the likely range, prepare a table of comparable offending, and draft submissions on sentence. They form part of the platform’s existing research module and its Briefs drafting workspace.
The aim is to make the comparison concise and useful: to show why a case may assist, where it differs, and what the court decided. A range of recorded sentences is context for professional assessment, rather than a prediction of the sentence a court will impose.
Practitioners can ask what sentences have been imposed for particular offending and how the circumstances compare with the matter they are working on. The research brings together relevant decisions, the features of the offending, the offender’s circumstances, and the sentencing outcomes.
Matthew Kalyk, founder and a practising barrister and former Federal Prosecutor with the Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions, has said that “as with much of our platform, we built this around what a lawyer actually needs. Finding comparable cases is a time-consuming and expensive process, and many other AI tools do not appreciate the nuances of the criminal sentencing process. This lets you find more cases and better cases, in minutes rather than hours.”
The sentencing research includes checks that connect reported sentence figures to extracts from the source judgments. It distinguishes sentences actually imposed from statutory benchmarks, such as maximum penalties and standard non-parole periods, and presents coverage information alongside the available figures.
The database includes sentencing decisions in indictable matters from appellate and first-instance decisions. An equivalent for summary offences will roll out over time.
BarristerAI now supports sentencing advices and submissions on sentence through Briefs. Practitioners can upload charge documents, facts, criminal histories, and reports, and request an advice on sentence, which states the likely range and the sentence to expect, or submissions on sentence addressing the objective seriousness of the offending, the offender’s subjective case, and comparable cases. Each document annexes a schedule of comparable sentences: the cases, the sentences imposed, the key points on sentence, and the paragraph of the judgment each statement comes from.
How to use it
To research comparable sentences, a practitioner asks a question in the research module in ordinary language: for example, what sentences have been imposed in New South Wales for wounding with intent where the offender pleaded guilty and had no prior convictions. BarristerAI returns the comparable decisions, the features of the offending and of each offender, and the sentences imposed, with each figure connected to an extract from the judgment.
To prepare an advice or submissions, a practitioner opens Briefs, uploads the sentence materials (the indictment or court attendance notice, the facts, the criminal history and any reports), and asks for an advice on sentence or submissions on sentence. BarristerAI reads the charges, works out the court and the plea, and sets out its assumptions so they can be corrected before it drafts. The draft, with its schedule of comparable sentences, can then be exported to Word.
The Comparable Sentences feature is just one of the new boutique tools that BarristerAI is rolling out to help specific practices at the bar and across the profession.
About us:
Founded by Matthew and Frank Kalyk, BarristerAI is an Australian legal technology company providing an AI-powered legal research platform. It provides access to cases and legislation, as well as research and drafting tools for barristers, solicitors, and small legal practices. Its platform brings together Australian case law, legislation, research, and document workflows.
For more information, visit barristerai.com.au
Contact details:
Media contact
Alexander Kalyk
COO, BarristerAI