Daily writing on separation in Australia.
Practical, current, and accredited. New articles every day on parenting, financial settlement, and the process of Family Dispute Resolution.
Can you do family dispute resolution if English is not your first language?
If English is not your first language, you can still take part in family dispute resolution in Australia, and you can do it in the language you are most comfortable using. Because the service is…
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Does family violence affect a property settlement in Australia?
For a long time, people who had been through family violence found it hard to have that experience reflected in how their property was divided. The law allowed it, but it sat in case law rather…
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If your ex breaks a parenting order, do you have to go back to mediation first?
In most cases, yes. If the other parent breaks a parenting order, you generally have to make a genuine effort at Family Dispute Resolution before you can apply to the court about it. The Family…
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How much does a divorce cost in Australia?
If you ask how much a divorce costs in Australia, the honest answer comes in two very different parts, and most people are quoted only the small one. The divorce itself, the legal end of the…
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Can the court still add back money your ex spent in a property settlement?
One of the most common questions in a financial separation sounds simple. My ex drained the joint account, ran up the credit cards, or spent tens of thousands on legal fees and a new car. Can the…
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Can a parent take a child interstate or overseas without the other parent's consent?
Few questions cause more panic after separation than whether the other parent can take the children away. The honest answer depends on one thing most people skip past: are we talking about a move…
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Can you be separated while living in the same house?
Plenty of couples separate but keep living in the same home, often for money or for the children. The law allows for this, and you can still be treated as separated. The catch is that you have to…
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How long after separating can you get divorced in Australia?
If you have just separated, one of the first questions is usually how long you have to wait before you can get divorced. The answer is simpler than most people expect, and it changed for the…
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How "best interests of the child" actually works after the 2024 amendments
When parents try to work out what is in the best interests of their child after separation, they reach for whatever framework they can find. Most of what is online still describes a framework that…
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What is the duty of disclosure in financial settlement, and how does it work after the 2024 amendments?
Every separating couple in Australia who reaches the financial side of their split runs into the same instruction from lawyers, mediators, and the court itself: disclose everything. Full and frank…
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Section 60I certificate vs Genuine Steps Certificate: what each is and when you need which
Two certificates sit in the same neighbourhood of Australian family law and are constantly confused. They have different names that sound similar, different issuers, different statutory sources,…
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At what age can a child decide which parent to live with in Australia?
Search for this question and most Australian websites will give you a version of the same hedged answer. There is no fixed age, they say, but children's views start to matter around 12, and by 14…
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