Relationship breakdowns are frequently likened to a death. Certainly, like a death, there is a good degree of grieving involved, along with the more practical management of affairs. During what is nearly always an emotional time this can seem like an insurmountable challenge. Property Settlement is an arrangement about how you and your ex-spouse or domestic partner distribute property. It … [Read more...]
All I Got For Xmas Was A Divorce: Where To Next?
It is a sad fact that, with the Christmas season over, many couples move into the New Year with a plan to go their separate ways. Certainly, once the children head back to school it is not unusual for lawyers to be inundated with queries from people who need legal support during this time. Admittedly, supporting families through this experience is one of the saddest and confronting … [Read more...]
Service of Documents in the Age of Facebook
Greg Welden likes to tell a story about how, when he first started working in the Law (in 2001), he wasn’t even provided with a computer. I should probably milk this for all it is worth (after all I am the younger partner). However, in truth, it reflects the nature of this profession, revealing how slow us lawyers are to adapt to change. Of course even the legal profession is not immune to change, … [Read more...]
Delaying Property Settlement: Understanding the Risks
So you’ve been separated for a while and you haven’t yet managed to get around to sorting out the property settlement. Life gets busy. You might be operating in a ‘state of denial’ and emotionally unprepared to deal with it. Sometimes reluctance simply stems from the reality that things are so complicated that you ‘just know’ that you will need to pay a lawyer to sort it all out. Whatever your … [Read more...]
Court Orders in Family Law: A System that Favours the Mother?
I’m miserable and have been for a long time now. My wife and I have, for the past 12 months, lived more like housemates than spouses only speaking when necessary (mostly with regards to the three children we share). The marriage is over. I know that I should move on but the thought of hardly ever seeing our children is the only thing stopping me. The current legal system is one which mostly … [Read more...]
Furniture Valuations, the Property Settlement and Family Law
I left my husband 2 months ago without a single stick of furniture and just one suitcase of clothes. I am happy for my ex to keep the house and all the furniture and contents. I want to start afresh, with new stuff, without any reminders of my miserable marriage and old life. I have receipts for most of the furniture so it should be easy for him to pay me half of what we originally paid and I … [Read more...]
Domestic Violence; Children and Family Law
After 6 years living with the constant threat of violence I have finally left my partner. How can the Law protect my 5 year old child from my ex-spouse who has an unpredictable and frequently violent temperament? It is a tremendously brave thing for anyone to leave a relationship that is characterised by domestic violence. Unfortunately, and especially where children are involved, it is a … [Read more...]
Tricky Teens and Consent Orders
My 15 year old daughter Charlie refuses to spend time with her father each weekend as dictated in a Consent Order put in place when her father and I separated six years ago. While things between her father and I were initially tense, we have since moved on and become amicable. Unfortunately, a family member accidentally disclosed to my daughter the reason for our marriage breakdown, my husband’s … [Read more...]
Christmas & Children: Life Following Separation
Just when you thought things were getting into something of a routine after the stresses and emotional turmoil of a separation and adjusting to new shared-parenting arrangements, the silly season is thrust upon you. In an effort to retain some semblance of peace as Christmas approaches, families in this situation are encouraged to consider the arrangements for the big day (and the holidays … [Read more...]
Spouse AWOL: Can I Still Get a Divorce?
“I haven’t spoken to my husband since the day he left the family home. That was five years ago. I’ve recently met someone and we’d like to get married. Problem is, I’m still married to my first husband . . . and I think he left the country. Can I still get a divorce even if I can’t locate him?” Following a separation, the shortest time before couples can apply for a divorce is one year. … [Read more...]
