With Christmas approaching and the world seemingly getting back to normal after Covid 19, many people will be thinking of taking a well-earned break to end 2020, either domestically or perhaps overseas. Some people have family overseas and they may wish to take advantage of the holidays for a visit and to be reunited with […]
Separation is a very difficult time for many people which is not surprising given that typically it combines some form of loss with fear and uncertainty as to the future. Family lawyers are not counsellors but a good family lawyer ought to be able to empathise with the situation clients find themselves in; and provide […]
It is not uncommon in family law parenting matters for issues of domestic violence to arise. Family violence is relevant evidence for the court to consider in determining what parenting order will be in the best interests of children. At the same time, a party to the parenting orders may have obtained a domestic violence […]
The vast majority of Family Lawyers will do everything they can to keep their client’s out of Court and try to settle the cases they run amicably (if possible) and as early on as possible to reduce legal costs. A good lawyer achieves this through making sure their clients are well advised as to the […]
The Covid 19 pandemic has created chaos for the lives of many people and industries. Within the Family Law and wider legal industry, the effects have largely been to cause lawyers to adapt to new ways of practice and for Courts to modify how they operate. Obviously, the thrust of these changes is to remove/reduce […]
It’s not unusual in many areas of law to apply time limits to the performance of a task or making a claim. Typically, time limits are something that lawyers are very mindful of when first meeting with, and advising a client, because if time limits are missed, the family lawyer could potentially be liable if […]
I have noticed that as the Covid-19 crisis has continued, many parents have sought advice as to whether the lock down and restriction of movement means parenting orders no longer need to be complied with. In some case I have seen parents use Covid 19 as an excuse to breach orders in circumstances that in […]
We are certainly approaching unprecedented and concerning times. While most people would agree that the health of the community and limiting the spread of the virus is paramount, it is also critically important that regular life carries on despite this pandemic. There is no doubt that over the next few months we will need to […]
It is permissible to adopt your partner’s child in Queensland, provided the process prescribed by law is followed. In Queensland the governing legislation is the state Adoption Act 2009 (Qld) (“AA”) and the Commonwealth Family Law Act 1975 (Cth) (“FLA”). The adoption process is conducted in the Family Court of Australia, a Queensland Magistrates Court […]
The Federal Circuit Court has issued Practice Direction No2 of 2020 which sets out more streamlined procedures for dealing with matrimonial property settlement matters. The new procedures apply to cases with a total net value of property less than $500,000 (called PPP500 cases i.e. Priority Property Pool cases) and apply to family law property settlements […]