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The Family Court Merger – Our Family Law Lawyers Outline What You Need to Know

By Chloe Elkerton, Family Law Solicitor

Last week the Morrison Government passed a Bill that will undoubtedly result in the biggest overhaul of Australia’s Family Court system since 1975.

Under our current Family Law structure, family law lawyers will tell you that matters proceed to hearing in one of either two Courts:

  1. The Family Court of Australia – which deals with complex family law matters, and
  2. The Federal Circuit Court of Australia – which deals with less complex family law matters and also other areas of law including migration, bankruptcy, human rights, industrial law and more.

The Family Court of Australia was established in 1976 as a stand-alone specialist Court. It recognised that many family law matters are complex and require specialised Judges and staff to support vulnerable Australian families. [...]  READ MORE →

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Prenuptial Agreements and the importance of complying with the Family Law Act

By Dylan Williams, Family Law Solicitor.

A prenuptial agreement, known as a ‘binding financial agreement’ under the the Family Law Act, is an agreement  with your partner to  predetermine how your assets will be distributed in the event of the breakdown of your relationship.

It is important that you speak with one of our prenuptial agreement lawyers to ensure the agreement complies with the Family Law Act so as to ensure that there can be no challenge to the enforceability of the agreement.

You and your partner can enter into a binding financial agreement prior to the commencement of the marriage / de facto relationship, throughout the marriage / de facto relationship, or after you have separated and or divorced.. [...]  READ MORE →

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4 Important Questions You Should Ask Your Divorce Lawyer

By Carolyn Munk, Principal Family Lawyer. 

Your Divorce Lawyer will tell you that an early practical and cost effective outcome is the best outcome for you and for the family as a whole.

Sometimes in complex matters that is not possible, but in many cases, if the client is well informed then such an outcome is easier to achieve.

Our Divorce Lawyers try to ensure our clients are informed about the following considerations:-

  1. What will be the impact of litigation upon the family and the future of the family to work together
  2. What is my best likely outcome
  3. What are the risks and the worst likely outcome
  4. How much will the legal costs be if I:-
    • Settle the case now
    • Try to see what settlement can be achieved if I participate in mediation
    • Proceed to litigation and let a Judge decide what financial and or parenting Orders should be made for my family.

While the Judges do the best they can in a limited time frame and with a limited knowledge of your family; there are significant Court delays and these are now probably the worst that they have ever been. [...]  READ MORE →

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Spousal Maintenance – Divorce Lawyers Explain How Much Is Reasonable

By Chloe Elkerton, Family Law Solicitor.

Divorce lawyers are often asked about rights to spouse maintenance. Spouse maintenance is financial support paid by a party to a marriage or de facto relationship to their former spouse after the relationship has broken down. The Court has the power to make an Oder for one party to pay spousal maintenance in circumstances where:

  1. One party is unable to support themselves and has an adequate reason for being unable to do so; and
  2. The other party is reasonably able to pay.

A question Divorce lawyers are often faced with, is, how much will I be required to pay?

In the recent case of Simpkin & Simpkin [2020], the trial Judge considered an application for spousal maintenance by a Wife who was in receipt of a disability support pension and was unable to work. On the other hand, the Husband was in a managerial position earning an annual salary of $240,000. [...]  READ MORE →

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Can I get a divorce in Australia if we were married overseas?

Posted by Dylan Williams, Family Law Solicitor. 

If you and your spouse were married overseas, are you eligible to get a divorce in Australia? A divorce lawyer Parramatta examines whether the Court can grant a divorce in those circumstances.

You may be able to get a divorce in the Federal Circuit Court provided you satisfy the following elements:-

  1. Is the marriage valid under Australian law?
  2. Does the Court have jurisdiction?
  3. Have you complied with service?
  4. Has the marriage broken down irretrievably?
  5. If there are children of the marriage under the age of 18 years, what are the arrangements for their care, welfare and development and is it acceptable?

Focusing on  items 1 and 2 above. If you would like a further discussion of divorces, please click here to access another paper that explores divorces generally. [...]  READ MORE →

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Innovations in the Family Court to help respond to domestic violence

One of the positives to arise from 2020 is the implementation of the Lighthouse Project, an initiative by the Family Court and Federal Circuit Court that seeks to improve the Court’s capacity to respond and assist in the protection of vulnerable parties and children in family law proceedings. Your Domestic Violence lawyer can provide some guidance as to the new project.

In summary, the implementation of the Lighthouse Project arose from a need for the Courts to assist vulnerable victims, including children, to leave an abusive environment  quickly and safely. [...]  READ MORE →

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The significance of domestic violence within the Family Courts and the legal impact it has upon separation

Domestic violence extends beyond just physical abuse; it can comprise sexual, emotional, financial and psychological abuse. Unfortunately, for some people who have been exposed to this type of behaviour over an extended period, they don’t appreciate that such behaviour is not the norm.

Domestic Violence lawyers can assist in identifying this type of behaviour.

Within the family law context, the Family Law Act describes this conduct as ‘family violence’ and defines it as follows:-

“… family violence means violent, threatening or other behaviour by a person that coerces or controls a member of the person’s family… or causes the family member to be fearful” (s.4AB(1)). [...]  READ MORE →

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What is ‘child custody’ and its influence on Australian Family Law

Separating from a former spouse is a difficult situation and is emotionally draining. Unfortunately, the effects of separation also affect your children. Questions begin to rise, such as ‘who is to have custody of our children’ ‘or how will child custody work’.

The phrase ‘child custody’ is often used by parents in discussions as to where the children should live and how often the children should spend time with the non-resident parent.

However, under the Family Law Act, the words ‘child custody’ are not used; rather, the legislation uses the terms parental responsibility’ and the Courts make Orders which includes the phrases ‘spend time with’ and ‘live with’ [...]  READ MORE →

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Section 60I Certificates: What is it and can it be bypassed?

Under the Family Law Act, parents are required to make a genuine effort to resolve any parenting disputes in relation to their child or children through family law mediation before they are eligible to commence Court proceedings.

How to obtain a Section 60I Certificate?

To obtain a Section 60I Certificate, a parent is required to attend family law mediation with an Accredited Family Dispute Resolution Practitioner (“the mediator”). The mediator can issue a Section 60I Certificate in the following circumstances:- [...]  READ MORE →

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Can your Affair End in a Property Settlement? Family Law Lawyers Delve Into This

If you are in an intimate relationship with another person, something that you may want to consider is whether the nature of the relationship with that person could result in a possible claim for  property settlement if that relationship were to break down. Firstly, your family law lawyers will need to consider whether your relationship amounts to a de facto relationship. Considerations include the duration of the relationship, whether you have lived together, whether you attend events together socially, and whether you depend on each other financially. [...]  READ MORE →

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Divorce Lawyer Explains section 114 Orders – Restraining Travel to Enforce Property Settlements

A divorce lawyer explains how the Family Court can impose restrictions on travel to ensure compliance with Family Court Orders.

In accordance with section 114 of the Family Law Act, the Family Court has the power to restrain a person from leaving Australia pending compliance with Family Court Orders, including final orders.

The Court will consider the following:

  1. A person’s freedom of movement, and
  2. The likelihood that the Order will not be complied with if the paying party’s freedom to leave the country is not restrained.

Ultimately, the Judge is faced with a balancing exercise and will consider whether the person’s compliance with the Orders outweighs their personal freedom of movement. [...]  READ MORE →

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Is COVID-19 a reasonable excuse to withhold a child from a parent? A Family Law Lawyers Answer

A common question asked of family law lawyers is: “do I have to continue complying with parenting Orders during the pandemic?”

There are very limited circumstances in which the Court will permit parents to fail to comply with Orders of the Court.

Parents will need to establish that there is a reasonable excuse for not complying. Whether the action or conduct is needed and necessary to protect the child from harm should be considered.

In a recent case of Pandell & Walburg (No 2) the Court considered the circumstances of  COVID-19 and how it relates to the consideration of whether a parent has a reasonable excuse not to comply. [...]  READ MORE →