They’re actually more or less the same thing, just entered at different stages of a relationship. Sure, a prenup is as it sounds, a document signed by an engaged couple before their wedding. However, the documents are slightly different in form and content. De facto and engaged/married couples alike, including same sex...
Many a law blog/post/article/vlog I have viewed in recent months has not really assisted in this confusion. A de facto relationship is defined in different ways under different laws in Australia (and the respective States and Territories). To the Department of Immigration, it means one thing,...
This is often the initial enquiry a person makes to their lawyer upon separation. What they rarely (but occasionally they do) mean is that they are wanting assistance with the legal process of dissolving their marriage by way of Divorce. The term divorce when used in the...
This phrase came from a client last year. Another client, throughout his matter continued to refer to the “the pub test” (I’ll come back to this in a later article). Both concepts are similar and in effect, refer to a non-lawyer providing an opinion or advice on, in this case, family...
I’m not entirely sure, but thanks for asking. Prenups are considered, even in 2019, to be a little taboo. A difficult subject to broach with a partner, it’s not as though one can request/offer a hand in marriage and then demand the signing of a prenup...
Well, no it’s not actually. As a parent in the family law realm you don’t really have rights, per se. There is nowhere in the legislation where a parent’s right to spend time with their child is discussed. Conversely, it is the children’s rights that are paramount. The only concern the...
Mediation has now become a compulsory step in most family law matters. This is to some people’s and, occasionally, their lawyer’s dislike. Unfortunately, gone are the days where people would litigate through the Family Court for a reasonable cost (time, emotional and financial) and achieve a...
As a whipper snapper Junior Lawyer I remember being in a then Federal Magistrates’ courtroom where he would be known to say, “We will be here until we finish, hope everyone brought their toothbrush”. Well, recently the toothbrush has again rated a mention, this time in...
We often speak to people who wish to make a change to their parenting mediation. This can include reconnecting with their children after a period of estrangement. It is extremely important not to delay in bringing any change to parenting arrangements to the table....
In the recent family law property settlement case of Anison [1] (not the couple’s real name) Justice Hogan in the Family Court made a costs order in favour of the Wife for a lengthy period of the proceedings. Whilst neither party had in fact “won” the case...
