Insights
Ah, the holiday season! A time when we dream of “Silent Night”—but let’s face it, for many families, it’s more like “Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, chaos all the way!” If you’re navigating separation, the holidays can feel like a never-ending bittersweet ballad.
If your former de-facto partner or spouse passes away after you commence property proceedings in the Family Court, in certain circumstances those proceedings can continue with the deceased party’s “personal legal representative” being substituted in to the place of the deceased in the proceedings.
If you have received an inheritance late in the relationship or even after the relationship ends, but before your family law financial settlement, the inheritance is not automatically ‘excluded’ from the asset pool.
The pandemic, self-isolation, quarantine or lock down do not stop your Family Court matter progressing. So even though you may be cooped up at home, your obligation to provide relevant disclosure is an ongoing requirement.
Victims of family violence can apply for restraining orders online under new laws introduced during the COVID-19 pandemic.
If your partner or spouse will not move out of the home, and you cannot resolve this by way of dispute resolution, it is possible to seek an Order from the Court for occupation of the home to your partner or spouse’s exclusion.
Spousal maintenance or de facto partner maintenance is not automatic and there is no one size fits all calculation available.
If your relationship with your spouse or partner is in trouble, then you need to collate and check any documents you might have signed favouring that person during the relationship.
The duty of disclosure is onerous and can be, at times, overwhelming, especially for the party who has controlled or managed the finances throughout the marriage or relationship.
Arbitration is an alternative way to resolve property disputes outside of the family court.
It is not unheard of for property matters to be resolved save for the retention of a family pet. If the parties cannot agree, what can the Court do?
When financial orders are made by the Family Court on a final basis, an individual can only apply to vary or set aside them under certain circumstances.
In Australia and under the Family Law Act, former spouses must file an application about property settlement or spousal maintenance (or both) within 12 months of their divorce Order becoming final.
It is important to know the value of assets when making a decision about your financial settlement.
Separation is when one party tells the other that it is over. This can be done face to face or in writing. It does not have to be agreed.
If one of your major assets is superannuation and your spouse is close to retirement age, it is possible to apply to the Court to make an order to flag superannuation.
In parenting matters parties are required to attempt Family Dispute Resolution before making an application to the Court for orders.
When relationships come to an end, it is a common situation to find that one or both partners have been unfaithful to the other. Irrespective of whether there was “cheating” in the relationship, in the eyes of the Court, this does not matter.
By pressing 55 when calling 000, a person can request emergency help to their address without saying a word.
Do you need to collect personal belongings from your former home after a Family Violence Restraining Order has been made?
Unfortunately the current pandemic has placed financial strain on many people and the increased pressure of being isolated and/or in lockdown has led to an increase in family violence throughout Australia.
There are a number of child contact services in Perth that provide a variety of additional services on top of supervised handovers and visits.
You may find a situation where you and your former partner wish to alter your parenting orders.
When parties have shared parental responsibility in accordance with an order, they are required to make decisions jointly in relation to major long term issues of the child/children.
Everyone wants to protect their children at separation, however, when emotions are heightened, the last thing on some parents’ minds is “whatever I do, or say and how I react has to be in the best interest of the children”.
If you are on relatively “good” terms with your spouse, consider whether a parenting plan is the best way to codify any agreements about your children.
An administrative child support assessment can be altered by the Registrar to take into account particular special circumstances.
Expecting mothers can apply to the Family Court to have the father of their unborn child provide financial support.
Handy hints to protect your firm when working remotely (cont.)
It is important to again consider the consequences of working from home in terms of systems access and access to internal IT infrastructure.
