In situations where parents separate, children will often have opinions on what they want to do, who they want to live with and when they want to spend time with each parent. When should a child’s wishes be acted upon by the court? The Family Law Act is silent as to what age a [...]
Family law is a complicated and foreign place for most people, however many people choose to or must represent themselves in relation to family law matters. It probably doesn’t need stating, but there are inherent challenges with being self-represented in court proceedings and this was highlighted in a recent court case that showed the [...]
The first legal ‘consideration’ that needs to be made when determining children’s care arrangements is whether an ‘equal time’ order is ‘reasonably practical’ and in the child's ‘best interest’. What is ‘reasonably practicable’ becomes very difficult when rosters are involved. A recent case has considered just such a situation, when a parent has significant [...]
The Family Court recently heard an appeal against a contravention application where the trial judge found that the contraventions had been established. The trial judge found that 4 contraventions were made out and ordered that the mother enter into a bond for 18 months. On appeal, the court examined the evidence that was before [...]
In a recent property settlement case, the court considered an application by the wife for spouse maintenance. The couple had been together for 16 years. The wife sought payment from the husband in the amount of $600 per week, to continue indefinitely. The husband proposed to pay the wife $500 per week for a period [...]
Often in family law matters regarding children, particularly where domestic violence is a factor, a court will make orders that a parent not be allowed to contact the other parent except in the event of an emergency. The court recently considered the definition of “emergency” in this context. The mother had a protection order [...]
If you have separated and have children and the suggestion of a Child Support Agreement has come up, it is important that you think carefully about what to do. Here are some quick tips: What is a child support agreement? A child support agreement is a written agreement between parents on the amount of [...]
Just separated? Experiencing difficulties with parenting arrangements? It is important you get advice about what will happen with custody of your children. There are a lot of myths regarding people wanting full custody of their children. Let's correct some of them. The legal process Every family is different and there are no standard or [...]
Separation can often be a complicated and confusing time. Most people don’t know where to begin. If you have just separated and don’t know what to do next, here are some of the common mistakes that can be made and that you need to avoid: Going immediately to mediation – many people believe there [...]
