Category: Family Law

Sometimes, parties to a divorce appeal the division of assets decided by a Federal Magistrate. In this case (Bishop & Bishop 2013 FamCAFC 138) heard on 6 September 2013, the division of assets had been decided after a 23-year marriage. The...

This case in 2013 involved the decision of the mother of a nine-year-old child to apply to change parenting orders made by consent in 2008, when the child was four. The father applied to the Full Court of Appeal to dismiss the application of the...

A recent case in the Family Court of Western Australia saw the primary care of three children aged 13, 12 and 11 awarded to the father’s ex-de facto partner rather than the children’s mother. This unusual outcome demonstrates that the child’s...

Have you recently obtained parenting orders? The law requires you to take an active role in encouraging your children to attend and live with or spend time with the other parent, which goes beyond merely ensuring that the children are available. It...

  Are your Family Law Court orders no longer relevant? Do you wish to change them? With changing circumstances, orders that have been made by the Court may no longer be practical or be in the best interests of the affected children. So it is...

    It is very difficult for a parent to move interstate or overseas with their children if their former spouse does not give permission. If the other parent opposes the move, the parent seeking to relocate will need to obtain an order from the...

It may be surprising to discover that the Australian Taxation Office has access to financial information disclosed in Family Court proceedings. But whether or not the ATO is permitted to use the information they discover from Family Court proceedings is...

Since 2009, de facto relationships have been included and defined in the Family Law Act 1975. Previously, when de facto couples had a legal dispute, it was handled by State law. The 2009 amendments provided for the family courts to have jurisdiction over...

Property Final Inspection before Settlement If you have ever purchased a property, you would have faced that nervous day three days prior to settlement, where you were invited to inspect the property. But what is it that you looked for when you did your...

    The Family Court can legally restrain a solicitor from acting for a client on the basis of a conflict. In a recent property proceedings case, (House & Altimas [2012] FamCA 625, 3 August 2012), the applicant husband applied for an order...