Blog
Are the views of the child considered in family law proceedings
Factors such as the child's maturity or level of understanding will inform the Family Court as to the weight, if any, it should give to the views of the child. Sometimes, a child's views will carry a significant amount of weight, and in other cases the child's views are given no weight at all.
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What is an Independent Children’s Lawyer?
An Independent Children's Lawyer is appointed by the Court to represent and promote the best interests of a child in family law proceedings. The ICL plays a crucial role in parenting disputes but must act independently of the Court and the parties.
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Landmark family law reforms passed in October 2023
On 19 October 2023, the Australian Parliament passed two significant pieces of legislation in an attempt to reform Australia’s family law system. These two pieces of legislation have been designed to make Australia’s family law system simpler, safer and more accessible.
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Beware when using social media during family law proceedings
It’s important for separated couples to be very careful with what they post on social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Threads and Tik Tok, when engaged in family law proceedings like divorce, property settlement and parenting negotiations.
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Risks of off-the-plan property purchases in NSW
Purchasing property off-the-plan in New South Wales can be an exciting venture. However, off-the-plan developments also contain potential pitfalls and risks that property purchasers need to be aware of.
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Navigating Christmas and time spent with children after separation
Many separated parents will be able to amicably make parenting arrangements for the Christmas period but some parents will be unable to reach agreement. For those parents, it’s important to know that any court applications to deal with parenting arrangements at Christmas must be filed by 4.00 pm on the second Friday in November in each year.
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7 tips when preparing your business for sale
Thoroughly preparing your business for sale will save you time, frustration and often, money, when it comes time to progress and finalise the transaction. There are some key issues to consider when selling a business and, in this blog, we highlight our top 7 tips.
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Annulment of marriage in Australia
An annulment of a marriage is not the same as a divorce. Annulment of your marriage is a legal declaration that there was no legal marriage between the parties even though a marriage ceremony may have taken place.
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Should I gift specific assets in my Will?
Detailing the distribution of specific property or other assets to individuals in your Will needs careful consideration. We look at three matters where the Will-maker left specific items to specific people in their Will. Those instructions led to some inequity for beneficiaries when dealing with the deceased estate.
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How to leave a gift to a charity in your Will
Deciding to make a gift to a charity in your Will is a commendable act. But there does need to be some consideration as to what you wish to achieve by the gift. You also need to be mindful of the potential for a family provision claim against your estate.
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How do I gift my digital assets in my Will?
There is no legislation at the moment in Australia which addresses the change of ownership of digital assets after death. But, given the prevalence of digital assets, it is increasingly likely that legislation will be put into place in the future.
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What can be done if the original Will is missing or lost?
We have recently received a number of queries where the original Will of the deceased is missing or lost. It may be that a copy of the Will has been found but not the original document. The question then is what to do and whether a Grant of Probate can still be made where only a copy of the Will is located.
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