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A prenuptial agreement lawyer explains how to change a binding financial agreement

It is best to seek out a prenuptial agreement lawyer if you want to dispute a binding financial agreement (‘BFA’). This type of agreement, like any other contract in law is subject to strict rules. However, s 90K (1) of the Family Law Act 1975 allows a court to set aside a binding financial agreement. There is a list of reasons outlined in this section including:

  • The agreement is obtained by fraud
  • The agreement is void, voidable or unenforceable
  • Arising circumstances make it impracticable for part of or the entire agreement to be carried out

A prenuptial agreement lawyer can advise you on what makes an act of “fraud”. Ordinarily it is involves using false representations to obtain an unjust advantage. However, to prove fraud, it must be shown that the false representation was made knowingly. This can be either without belief in its truth or in a reckless manner. [...]  READ MORE →

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A prenuptial agreement lawyer’s role in disputing a BFA

It is best to seek out a prenuptial agreement lawyer if you want to dispute a binding financial agreement (‘BFA’). This type of agreement, like any other contract in law is subject to strict rules. However, s 90K (1) of the Family Law Act 1975 allows a court to set aside a binding financial agreement. There is a list of reasons outlined in this section including:

  • The agreement was obtained by fraud
  • The agreement is void, voidable or unenforceable
  • If arising circumstances make it impracticable for part of or the entire agreement to be carried out

Fraud

A prenuptial agreement lawyer can advise you on what makes an act of “fraud”. Ordinarily it is involves using false representations to obtain an unjust advantage. To prove fraud, it must be shown that the false representation was made knowingly. This can be either without belief in its truth or in a reckless manner. [...]  READ MORE →

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Divorce Lawyer Explains the Steps You Can Take if You are Unhappy with Your Final Orders

If you are not satisfied with your Final Orders made by the Court, your divorce lawyer can provide you with some advice about your options of an Appeal. Appeals must be filed within 28 days of the Orders being made.

However, the filing of an appeal does not automatically stop the obligations contained in the Final Orders. As such, your divorce lawyer may advise whether it is appropriate to file an application to stay the Final Orders. If the application for a stay is successful, the Final Orders will not operate until the appeal is decided. [...]  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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The Consequences of Escaping Debt in Family Property Proceedings

If you or your former spouse owe a significant sum of money to a person or company known as a creditor, you may be wondering how this will be dealt with in your family property proceedings. Some have attempted to transfer property from one spouse to another in a bid to protect their property from a creditor’s claim. Our family law lawyers can provide some guidance on what you should do if you owe money to a creditor and the consequences for non-disclosure.

During your family property proceedings, there is an obligation on both parties to disclose any significant creditors or any significant claim against them by a third party to the Court. This includes Applications for Orders made by consent. In circumstances where a Family Court Order would prevent a creditor to recover their debt, your family law lawyers may need to give the creditor notice of the Family Court proceedings who are then provided the opportunity to intervene in the proceedings and seek their own orders to protect their interests in having their debt paid. [...]  READ MORE →

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Property Settlement Agreement – A Four Step Process

A property settlement is a process which involves the division of assets between parties.

If you have separated with your partner you may be left wondering what your rights to the assets might be. You might be questioning what is involved and how our lawyers can assist you to reach a property settlement agreement.

Here at Matthews Folbigg Lawyers, the usual process to get your Property Settlement started is to meet with one of our lawyers who will work through 4 important steps with you.

Step 1: Work out the “Net Assets”

Working out the “net assets” involves listing the parties’ assets, liabilities, superannuation and financial resources to reach a net equity which we call “the asset pool”. [...]  READ MORE →

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

If you’re having an affair, something that you may want to consider is whether the person you are having an affair with can claim your property after the relationship breaks down.

Firstly, your family law lawyers will need to consider whether your affair 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.

The case of Jonah v White (2011) considered whether someone you are having an affair with can amount to a de facto relationship. In this case, the Husband (H) had a 17 year long affair with a woman (Ms J). During the affair, H continued to live with his wife and three children. Family law lawyers for Ms J argued that the relationship she had with H amounted to a de facto relationship under the Family Law Act. [...]  READ MORE →

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How Binding Financial Agreements can let you Decide the Terms of your Property Settlement Agreement

A Binding Financial Agreement (BFA) allows couples to negotiate a property settlement agreement that suits their needs. Unless successfully challenged, it will  prevent the Family Court from dealing with your future property or spousal maintenance claims.

Binding Financial Agreements can be made:

  1. Before a marriage under a s 90B Agreement, also known as a “pre-nuptial agreement” or “prenup”;
  2. During a marriage under a s 90C Agreement – this is typically exercised during the period between separation and divorce; or
  3. After divorce under a s 90D Agreement.

A BFA can be drafted with your family law lawyer to formalise a property settlement agreement between you and your former spouse. It is an alternative means to going to Court which can be timely and expensive. The Court does, however, have the power to set aside a BFA  in certain limited circumstances. [...]  READ MORE →

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Recent Family Court Case Sheds Light on What Initial Contributions are Really Worth?

On 1 May 2020, the Family Court handed down the decision of Barnell & Barnell. This matter involved a wife’s separation lawyer seeking to appeal a final judgment based on the Court’s treatment of the husband’s initial contributions.

The husband purchased Property B in 1988 prior to the commencement of the relationship in 1995. While no valuation was conducted on the property as at the commencement of cohabitation, the current value was agreed to be $340,000.

Given the length of the relationship and consistent gifts of money from the wife’s parents, the wife’s separation lawyer argued that the overall contributions of the parties should be considered equal. The Judge disagreed and said that to do so, would be to give insufficient weight to the fact that Property B was unencumbered at the commencement of the relationship and has not since been improved by either party. As the value of Property B represented some 36% of the net property pool, the Judge held that the husband’s contribution must be accorded significant weight. The Judge made an assessment of contributions as 62.5% to the husband and 37.5% to the wife being a 25% difference in contributions to reflect the various contributions of both parties. [...]  READ MORE →

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Will Expected Inheritance Be Included in My Family Property Settlement Agreement?

An expected or future inheritance is an inheritance that one party is expecting to receive once the testator passes away. Will the Family Court take into consideration a future or expected inheritance in your divorce settlement? If you or your ex-spouse are anticipating an inheritance, say from an elderly parent, you may want to get some advice regarding how this may impact your property settlement agreement.

In the 1995 case of White & Tulloch the Court noted that the expectancy of inheritance will generally not amount to a financial resource to be considered in your property settlement agreement. The term financial resource involves some degree of “entitlement to, control over, or relative certainty of receipt of property”. On the other hand, a will has been described as a mere expression of intention at the time it was made. They may be revoked or altered and only have legal effect upon the death or the testator. In this case, the expected inheritance of an elderly parent was not included in the divorce settlement. [...]  READ MORE →

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Can You DIY Your Prenup?

In an effort to save money on their property settlement, some couples have sought to DIY their prenup. But is it a good idea?

The Family Law Act states that for a prenup to be valid and enforceable, one requirement is that both parties need to obtain independent legal advice. This legal advice has three components:

  1. Firstly, the legal advice must be given before signing the agreement and must cover the effect of the agreement on the rights of that spouse and about the advantages and disadvantages of the agreement.
  2. Secondly, either before or after signing the agreement, each spouse must be provided with a signed statement by the legal practitioner stating that the advice was provided to that party.
  3. Thirdly, a copy of the statement must be provided to the other spouse or legal practitioner for the other party.

Take for instance the scenario of Mark and Sally. Mark and Sally would both like a prenup before they marry next year to protect their respective financial interests. According to Australian law, both Mark and Sally must seek separate legal advice. That is, two separate lawyers that are independent of each other need to be engaged in the process. Prior to signing the agreement, Lawyer A gives their advice to Mark, while Lawyer B gives their advice to Sally. Before or after signing the prenup, Mark’s lawyer needs to provide a signed statement that declares the said legal advice was given to Mark. Then, a copy of that statement needs to be given to Sally or her lawyer. Sally also needs to do the same. [...]  READ MORE →

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The Changing Stigma Associated with Signing a Prenuptial Agreement

The idea of a binding financial agreement, commonly known as a prenuptial agreement has traditionally been associated with a negative and unromantic stigma; often automatically suggesting that the individual seeking the prenup is already having doubts about the relationship.

This stigma however is dwindling away with more millennial couples now seeing the positive side to prenuptial agreements. Statistics have illustrated a rise over the past two decades of the median age of couples marrying for the first time.  More individuals are now entering into relationships with existing assets including real estate and established businesses. Prenuptial agreements are more often being viewed by such individuals as analogous to buying insurance. No one buys insurance with the intention of crashing their car or having their home robbed, they purchase it for peace of mind just in case it happens. Likewise, parties don’t get married and enter a prenuptial agreement with a plan to get divorced; it is just insurance in the event that things don’t go to plan. [...]  READ MORE →