Practice area
Practical articles on separation, divorce, property settlements, parenting arrangements, de facto rights and intervention orders under Australian family law.
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National cornerstone guide to parenting orders under Part VII of the Family Law Act 1975 (Cth), updated for the 6 May 2024 reforms — best interests, safety, parental responsibility, family dispute resolution, evidence, court process, interim and urgent orders, relocation, recovery, contravention and variation.
A specialist guide to how Australian courts assess the best interests of a child in parenting matters under the current post-6 May 2024 framework — the paramountcy principle, section 60CC factors, safety, needs, relationships, children's views, culture, capacity and evidence.
Definitive Australian guide for business owners facing separation — how family law treats sole traders, companies, partnerships, family trusts, unit trusts, professional practices, farms, franchises and start-ups; the four-step property settlement process; valuation, goodwill, EBITDA, future maintainable earnings and personal goodwill; general tax, CGT and superannuation interaction; loans from family, related-party entities, shareholders' agreements, buy/sell agreements, asset protection; interim arrangements, Consent Orders, Binding Financial Agreements, mediation and Court proceedings; practical strategies for keeping the business intact.
Definitive Australian guide for spouses, controllers, trustees and third parties on how family trusts are treated in divorce and property settlements — discretionary, fixed, unit, hybrid and testamentary trusts; control, Kennon v Spry, property vs financial resource, disclosure, valuation, evidence, third-party rights, post-separation restructures, Consent Orders and BFAs, tax and stamp duty interaction, and coordination with estate planning.
Cornerstone Australian family-law guide for separating married and de facto couples — separation and divorce, de facto relationships, parenting arrangements and orders, child support, the four-step property settlement process, superannuation splitting, binding financial agreements, family violence, consent orders and litigation, time limits, practical steps after separation and when to obtain legal advice.
Definitive Australian guide on how inheritances are treated in divorce and property settlement — timing, size, use, vested and contingent interests, future inheritances, testamentary trusts, gifts versus loans from parents, mixing and tracing, disclosure, CGT and stamp duty, Consent Orders and Binding Financial Agreements, and the just-and-equitable check.
Definitive Parke Lawyers guide to property settlement after separation and divorce in Australia — married and de facto couples, the four-step process, asset pool, contributions, future needs, superannuation, family businesses, trusts, real estate, investment properties, inheritances, bankruptcy, consent orders, binding financial agreements, mediation and time limits.
Definitive Australian guide on how gifts and loans from parents are treated in divorce and property settlements — gift versus loan, contemporaneous evidence, contributions, resulting and constructive trusts, third-party rights, disclosure, sham debts, valuation, companies and trusts, Consent Orders and Binding Financial Agreements.
Definitive Australian guide on full and frank financial disclosure in family-law property settlements — what must be disclosed, standard documents, continuing duty, warning signs of hidden assets, companies, trusts, cryptocurrency, overseas property, subpoenas, forensic accountants, lawful evidence gathering, preservation orders, consequences of non-disclosure, adverse inferences, Consent Orders, Binding Financial Agreements and setting aside orders.
Definitive Australian guide on what happens when a spouse spends, withdraws, transfers, gifts or otherwise deals with assets after separation — ordinary expenditure versus dissipation, current treatment of add-backs, premature distribution, wastage, legal fees, gambling, gifts to relatives, sale below value, companies and trusts, cryptocurrency, superannuation, real property and caveats, joint accounts, evidence and tracing, disclosure, urgent preservation, section 106B, third-party rights, bankruptcy, tax, Consent Orders and Binding Financial Agreements.
Authoritative Australian guide on who pays the mortgage, rates, insurance, utilities and household expenses after separation — lender liability versus family-law treatment, post-separation contributions, principal versus interest, occupation of the family home, occupation rent, the person who moves out, redraw and offset, refinance, sale, interim agreements and orders, spousal maintenance, child support, family violence, companies and trusts, rental property, tax, evidence, hardship, Consent Orders and Binding Financial Agreements.
Authoritative Australian guide on interim property settlements and partial property orders before final orders — what an interim property order is, the Court's discretionary approach, sale of the family home before final settlement, sale proceeds, liquid assets, business and trust interests, superannuation, tax, liabilities and reserves, disclosure, valuation uncertainty, third-party rights, bankruptcy, family violence, children, spousal maintenance, consent arrangements, evidence, procedure, safeguards, effect on final settlement, refusal and urgent cases.
Authoritative Australian guide on who pays debts after separation and divorce — joint and sole debts, mortgages, credit cards, tax, HECS/HELP, business debts, personal guarantees, family loans, post-separation borrowing, indemnities, refinance and release, bankruptcy, creditor rights and the treatment of liabilities in property settlement, Consent Orders and Binding Financial Agreements.
Authoritative Australian guide to tax and capital gains tax in divorce and property settlements — marriage-breakdown CGT rollover under Subdivision 126-A, the main-residence exemption, investment property, latent tax, sale versus transfer, state transfer duty, shares, private companies, Division 7A, trusts, SMSFs, superannuation splitting, GST, overseas assets, cryptocurrency, Consent Orders, Binding Financial Agreements, indemnities and tax-aware drafting and implementation.
Authoritative Australian guide to how assets are valued in divorce and family-law property settlements — valuation date, single experts, instructions, the family home, investment and specialised property, businesses, professional practices, companies, trusts, partnerships, shares, superannuation, SMSFs, cryptocurrency, overseas assets, latent tax and transaction costs, double counting, disclosure, Consent Orders and Binding Financial Agreements.
Authoritative Australian guide to post-separation contributions and changes in asset value in family-law property settlements — separation does not freeze the pool; mortgage and household payments, occupation of the home, parenting and homemaker contributions, income and savings after separation, new assets and debts, passive market movements, active improvements, business growth, inheritances, trust distributions, superannuation accrual, wastage, preservation, delay, interim orders, Consent Orders and Binding Financial Agreements.
Authoritative Australian guide to current and future circumstances (often called 'future needs') in family-law property settlements — discretionary, comparative, no fixed percentage; age, health, income, earning capacity, care and housing of children, financial resources, trusts, inheritances, pensions and superannuation, family violence economic effect, wastage, liabilities, cohabitation, spousal maintenance and child support, time limits, evidence and what is just and equitable under sections 79 and 90SM of the Family Law Act 1975 (Cth).
Authoritative Australian guide to how financial, non-financial, homemaker and parenting contributions are assessed in a family-law property settlement — initial contributions, wages, mortgage payments, renovations, business and trust contributions, gifts, loans, inheritances, superannuation, short and long relationships, post-separation contributions, the economic effect of family violence, wastage and the just-and-equitable check under sections 79 and 90SM of the Family Law Act 1975 (Cth) as amended on 10 June 2025.
Authoritative Australian guide to how property owned before a marriage or de facto relationship is treated in a family-law property settlement — it is not automatically excluded from the pool; net equity, length of relationship, mortgage repayments, renovations, market growth, sale and replacement, business and trust interests, pre-relationship superannuation, inheritances, gifts, overseas property, Binding Financial Agreements and the just-and-equitable check under sections 79 and 90SM of the Family Law Act 1975 (Cth) as amended on 10 June 2025.
Authoritative Australian guide to when final property settlement orders or Consent Orders may be varied or set aside under section 79A and section 90SN of the Family Law Act 1975 (Cth) — finality, miscarriage of justice, fraud, suppression of evidence, non-disclosure, false evidence, duress, family violence, impracticability, failed refinance, default, exceptional child-related circumstances, proceeds of crime, consent variation, the distinction between appeal, enforcement, correction and setting aside, BFAs under Part VIIIA and VIIIAB, creditors, bankruptcy trustees, bona fide purchasers, tax and duty, superannuation, interim protective relief and procedure.
How Australian courts address family violence in parenting cases, including safety, evidence, intervention orders, supervised time and urgent applications.
A specialist Australian guide to Independent Children’s Lawyers in parenting proceedings under Part VII of the Family Law Act 1975 (Cth) — appointment under section 68L, statutory duties under section 68LA, the post–6 May 2024 meeting requirement, children’s views, evidence, court process, funding and complaints.
A specialist Australian guide to recovery orders under section 67U of the Family Law Act 1975 (Cth) — urgent applications, evidence, location and information orders, police execution, family violence, child refusal, interstate and overseas issues, passports and the Family Law Watchlist.
A specialist Australian guide to contravention of parenting orders — the current Division 13A framework, reasonable excuse, evidence, enforcement pathways, family violence and child-refusal issues, recovery, variation and the Court's available responses.
A specialist guide to relocating with children after separation in Australia — consent, court orders, the best-interests framework, evidence, unilateral moves and urgent applications.
How private companies, partnerships, trusts and professional practices are treated in Australian family law property settlements — valuation, goodwill, disclosure and protecting a business during separation.
A plain-English guide to child support in Australia — how Services Australia calculates assessments, the statutory formula, care percentages, limited and binding child support agreements, lump sum arrangements, school fees, change of assessment, enforcement and overseas issues.
A plain-English guide to time limits for property settlement in Australia — the 12-month deadline for married couples, the 2-year limit for de facto couples, leave out of time, hardship requirements, and how to protect your rights after separation.
A plain-English guide to Consent Orders in Australian family law — how property and parenting agreements are formalised, the difference between consent orders and informal agreements or BFAs, filing requirements, enforcement, variation and when they are appropriate.
A practical guide to Binding Financial Agreements under Australian family law — pre-nups, during-relationship and post-separation agreements, validity, independent legal advice, set-aside grounds and how BFAs compare with consent orders.
A plain-English guide to the four-step property settlement process in Australian family law — identifying the pool, contributions, future needs, just and equitable, disclosure, super, businesses, trusts and inheritances, consent orders and court proceedings.
A practical step-by-step guide to divorce in Australia — the no-fault system, 12-month separation, sole and joint applications, filing, service, hearings, time limits and what happens after the order is made.
A plain-English guide to superannuation splitting in Australian family law — how super is treated in property settlements, accumulation vs defined benefit funds, splitting orders, agreements, tax and practical examples.
How bankruptcy affects family law property settlement in Australia — the role of the trustee, vested property, the rights of the non-bankrupt spouse, creditors, clawback issues and what to do if your former partner becomes bankrupt.
A practical guide to spousal maintenance and de facto maintenance under Australian family law — the need-and-capacity test, types of orders, time limits, evidence and how maintenance differs from child support and property settlement.
How Bitcoin, Ethereum and other digital assets are treated in Australian family law property settlements — disclosure, valuation, blockchain tracing and the consequences of non-disclosure.
Your rights regarding changing locks after separation in Victoria — ownership versus occupancy, jointly owned property, rentals, family violence, intervention orders and sole occupancy orders.
A plain-English guide to Family Violence Intervention Orders in Victoria — who can apply, what counts as family violence, interim and final orders, conditions, children, contesting an order and the consequences of breach.
Australia's no-fault divorce system explained — the 12-month separation rule, separation under one roof, joint and sole applications, overseas spouses, short marriages and post-divorce time limits.
How PSIOs protect people from threatening or harmful conduct outside a family relationship — who can apply, the court process, interim and final orders, and the consequences of breach.
When de facto partners can bring a property settlement or spousal maintenance claim in Australia — how relationships are defined, what's included in the property pool, and how to protect your position.
How Australian family law approaches arrangements for children after separation — best interests, parenting plans, family dispute resolution and parenting orders.
When a caveat can be used to protect an interest in real estate after separation — what a caveat is, the risks of lodging one, and the alternatives available.
Why there is no automatic 50/50 split in Australian family law — how the property pool, contributions, future needs and fairness shape every settlement.
When a parent's legal duty to support a child ends in Australia — including child support, adult child maintenance, university students, disability and estate planning.
