Northern Tablelands MP Adam Marshall said there would be no excuses any more for defendants arguing they couldn’t understand the orders.

“There is never any excuse for breaching an ADVO, but the government is now making them crystal clear so there is no doubt,” Mr Marshall said.

“Getting rid of jargon means there can be no excuses, and the new ADVOs are designed to use language that a 13-year-old can understand.”

A readability test shows the current ADVO would need someone with 13-and-a-half years of education to understand it.

Women’s Domestic Violence Court Advocacy Service director Renata Field welcomed the change.

“We do hear a lot of people saying they don’t understand the legal language or the magistrate, so being able to offer something in plain English is really important,” she said.

“In practice, a lot of offenders are quite manipulative – good at working systems – so if there is any way they can show that they didn’t understand [and] that will help them get out of a breach, then that is a huge issue.”

Justice and Police Minister Troy Grant said it would help police process orders faster and protect victims.

“We want people who are the subject of ADVO orders to know exactly what the consequences will be if they don’t comply – they can expect police to be knocking on their doors,” Mr Grant said. 

“Now the documents will spell out in plain English what the penalties for breaching an ADVO are, including up to two years in prison.” 

Tamworth MP Kevin Anderson said it was part of a raft of new measures the NSW government had introduced this year to help stamp out domestic violence. 

“Breaching an ADVO is a serious offence, so making them crystal clear is vitally important to help protect victims,” he said.

The new ADVOs will be rolled out across the state in the next 12 months.