a person who enters a dwelling-house they own or co-own can be charged with breaking and entering if they are not currently an occupant and they enter intending to commit or having committed domestic violence against a current or former intimate partner

if a court order, bail condition, or parole condition prevents a person from residing at the property, they are automatically treated as not being an occupant — their ownership does not protect them from the charge

this closes a gap created by a 2023 High Court ruling that had been used as a defence by domestic violence perpetrators who co-owned the home they entered to commit violence