Blog

Autumn is a time of change, shedding the old for the new. For newly separated families, the symbolism is apt. By Autumn, newly separated couples have navigated through the Summer holidays and Christmas season, and started back at work. For the first time, they have had to figure out how...

Maybe your kids are heading back to school after an enjoyable holiday break, or maybe you’re one of the millions of Aussie parents who has a child who is a first timer for big school. Either way, if you are a single parent who is co-parenting with your ex, getting everyone (including yourselves) prepared for the first day of school can be a little stressful.

We are all familiar with New Year Resolutions. They mark the end of the year that has been and invite reflection and evaluation. They date stamp the start of something new and prompt us to identify what is important to us in life and what we wish to focus on in the coming year.

Following separation, it’s common for parents to think in terms of what they’re entitled to when it comes to sharing custody of the kids. While the world has come a long way in equalising parental responsibilities between men and women, the way this question normally materialises is whether dads have equal rights to mums.

In most cases “separation” occurs when one person moves out of the family home. Usually the person who moves out doesn’t expect it to be the last time they ever set foot in the place they called home. But often it is when a family violence order is in place....

After endless lockdowns, mask wearing, working from home and the other fun aspects of Covid-19, the Family Law Section 19th Family Law Conference had finally arrived on 14 August 2022. Only 4 rescheduled dates later, we finally arrived! A number of our FGD staff from the Melbourne, Canberra and Sydney...

One of the biggest considerations when parties separate is who will pay the mortgage and other expenses in the intervening period before parties reach an agreement. Generally, these expenses don’t stop when two people separate- and parties to a relationship which has broken down often see a drastic increase in...

The ANU Family Law Course ran over the winter break. FGD were pleased to partner with ANU to assist students with understanding how litigation works from a family law perspective. To begin FGD Director and ANU Alum, Haydn Marsh, presented a workshop to the students on advocacy. He taught the...

Are trust assets up for grabs when it comes to family law property settlements? It has long been established that the answer to this question depends on the facts and circumstances of each case. The outcome of a leading High Court case in 2008 (Kennon v Spry [2008] HCA 56)...

We all know someone who has been through a separation, many of us have experienced it ourselves. Separation from a significant partner can be lifechanging. It is an incredibly challenging period and comes with strong emotions, grief and loss, fear, worry, never ending questions and, often, conflict with the ex-partner....

A staggering 1 in 2 LGBTIQ people will experience Domestic or Family Violence in their lifetime.  Studies have shown that Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans, Intersex and Queer (LGBTIQ) people are not only more likely to experience family violence, but less likely to recognise, report and receive appropriate support in response....

FGD are proud to announce, we are launching an LGBTIQ Legal Service. Recurrent enquiries into Australia’s family law system have found glaring issues with respect to the recognition of evolving LGBTIQ issues and access to justice for LGBTIQ identifying people. One of the key concerns is that the Family Law...