In general, it is expected that a person will make provisions for their close relatives and dependents in their Will. If a person feels that they have been left out of someone’s Will, they can bring a legal challenge against the deceased person’s estate. This kind of lawsuit is known as a Family Provision Claim [...]
Parents at all times have assisted their children to become established in life but in more recent times the amount of financial assistance being given by parents to their children to enter into the property market, has been significant. Parents assist their children and do not usually give much thought to the legal implications [...]
Imagine this – in the first year of your new marriage, you also win the lotto. You decide to deposit the money into a term deposit, as a nest egg of sorts, and your lotto win increases to a cool $1 million. After a decade, the marriage sours and you both decide to part [...]
The legal definition of marriage in the Marriage Act 1961 has been changed from being a “union of a man and a woman” to a “union of two people”.This change means that marriages between same sex couples previously recognised outside of Australia are now recognised in Australia. It can be complicated if the ‘married’ couple have separated prior [...]
Working out the best way to divide property you own with your former spouse can be very difficult and daunting. It is not as simple as selling off assets and each party retaining a certain portion of the sale proceeds. It is imperative to get the right legal advice to achieve a formal property settlement [...]
A very recent decision in a case which went all the way to the High Court has reinforced the need to act fairly at all times when entering into a Financial Agreement under the Family Law Act. In the particular case in question, a couple met online when the wife lived overseas. She subsequently [...]
What happens if someone tapes a conversation with their ex without their knowledge? Although it is usually illegal to record someone without their knowledge, in some circumstances such a recording may be still used in evidence. In a recent case, the court was asked to determine whether recordings made by a woman could be [...]
In the Wollongong and Sydney Family Court Registries, final hearings are presently being listed well into 2018 and beyond. Recent media outlets have reported on the significant delays and under funding issues which have plagued this area of law. The Chief Justice of the Family Court, the Honourable Diana Byran AO, has spoken out [...]
If you know someone, perhaps a family member or a friend, who is having matrimonial problems ask them whether they have considered mediation. We all know that, statistically speaking, somewhere between 40% and 50% of marriages and long term relationships breakdown at some stage but what a lot of those people believe is that [...]
There are 3 ways in which parties can arrange child support matters following a separation involving children. They are: via an “administrative assessment” which is conducted by the Child Support Agency; via a child support agreement; via an informal agreement between the parents. Each is explained below. Administrative Assessment The Child Support (Assessment) Act enables parents [...]
