Author: Simone Green

Overseas travel with children is often a contentious issue among separated parents and is a common application in the Family Courts. An application for a child’s passport must be made to the Minister responsible for Citizenship, under section 11 of...

Since 2005, the Family Courts have had the power to alter the property interests of bankrupt and non-bankrupt spouses. Some interesting points of law that have become clear in recent years include the fact that: The Family Courts can alter property...

The effects of family violence on children are far-reaching. Family violence is more than physical violence and includes coercive and controlling violent behaviour. If you are in an abusive relationship, it is essential that you leave and get help for...

Education and the choice of school can often become a topic of bitter contention between separated parents. Disputes typically are over a public versus private school, a religious versus non-religious school or even the choice of public school based on...

Prenuptials and Agreements for Property and Maintenance Planning to marry or move in? Separating and have joint property? Changes in your marital situations often require new financial arrangements. Prenuptial agreements, often called a prenup, are an...

The first step in negotiating a property settlement between a separating couple is for them to accurately identify all their assets and liabilities. This is often referred to as the ‘property pool’. All assets and liabilities should be placed into a...

With much public debate recently emerging on the issue of same sex marriage and marriage equality, it is worth looking at the existing rights of same sex couples when it comes to the Australian family law system. The Australian Constitution (in...

There are two ways to record the parenting agreement between separated parents. The first is a parenting plan; the second is a consent order. What is a parenting plan? This is a document that records an informal agreement between parents about matters...

While the Family Court and the Federal Circuit Court (the Family Courts) have the job of ruling on disputes concerning property and children, they should be viewed only as a last resort for the vast majority of separating couples. One Federal Circuit...

The division of property at the end of a relationship is often emotional but when some of that property is from one party’s inheritance, it can become particularly contentious. The law applying to the division of inherited property is not clear cut....