Our services

Central Coast Family Law can assist you by listening to your circumstances, providing you advice and possible outcomes, negotiating and if need be representation at Court. We provide assistance in the following areas:

Property Settlement
Childrens Matters
De Facto Relationships
Financial Agreements
AVO
Wills, Powers of Attorney and Enduring Guardianship
Probate Matters

Property Settlement - back

When a relationship has ended, the parties will want to make arrangements to divide the assets accumulated or brought into the relationship between them in a fair way. Property settlements can take into account all the assets and liabilities of the parties whether real estate, bank accounts, superannuation, interest in businesses or any other assets.

It is a common misconception that property has to be divided 50/50 in all circumstances. Instead, the Courts have laid down a number of principles that will be applied to each matter’s individual circumstances. Before 1 March 2009, different laws applied to married couples than to de facto couples. However, since that time, the same principles apply.

Because we have experience in dealing with these matters, we can advise you as to those principles and also the processes that are involved.

For both married and de facto couples, if an agreement as to the division of assets is reached, that agreement needs to be formalised to make it binding. If an agreement cannot be reached then it might be necessary to commence court proceedings. A settlement of those court proceedings is available at any time and can be formalised with Consent Orders.

For more information on Property Settlement please contact Central Coast Family Law by clicking here.

Childrens Matters- back

A major issue on the breakdown on many relationships is about with which parent a child will live, and the amount of time and under what circumstances that child will spend with the other parent.

We are able to assist our clients in either reaching an agreement about parenting arrangements for their child or children by preparing Consent Orders to formalise the agreement or, if an agreement is unable to be reached, commencing proceedings asking the Court to make orders.

In some circumstances, parents can keep their arrangements informal. Whether it is more appropriate for you have formal or informal arrangements will depend on the circumstances of your case.

It is possible for people other than the parents, such as grandparents to seek orders about spending time with a child with whom they have had a substantial relationship prior to the breakdown of the marriage or de facto relationship.

In all parenting matters, the Court’s paramount consideration is what is in the best interests of the child.
For more information on children matters please contact Central Coast Family Law by clicking here.

De Facto Relationships- back

Significant changes to the law relating to de facto couples occurred in 2009.

Since 1 March 2009, property and maintenance matters for de facto couples in all states and territories, except South Australia and Western Australia, can be dealt with under the Family Law Act 1975 in the same way as married couples, and any disputes can be dealt with by the Family Law Courts.

In certain instances, however, in New South Wales, the provisions of the Property (Relationships) Act 1984 will apply.

De Facto Couples that Separate after 1 March 2009

The Family Law Courts have the power to deal with all property and financial resources held by the parties to a de facto relationship and to divide them justly and equitably after taking into account a number of factors, in the same way as married couples.

Applications for a property settlement must be filed with the Court within 2 years from the date of separation. Property matters can also be resolved by negotiation and formalised as a financial agreement.

De Facto Couples that Separated before 1 March 2009

De facto couples that separated before 1 March 2009 will not be able to deal with their matters under the Family Law Act 1975 unless both parties agree to accept the jurisdiction of the Family Law Act 1975. If both parties do not agree to accept that jurisdiction, the Property (Relationships) Act 1984 will apply.

Under the Property (Relationships) Act 1984, the Court has the discretion to divide property between parties to domestic relationships. It also allows Courts to provide maintenance payments to parties to a domestic relationship, in limited circumstances and for limited periods.

The Property (Relationships) Act 1984 focuses primarily on the contributions made by each party to the relationship and does not take into account in any significant way the future needs of the parties.

For more information on de facto relationship matters please contact Central Coast Family Law by clicking here.

Financial Agreements- back

Pre-Nuptial Agreements
Under the Family Law Act 1975, it is possible for parties to enter into a Binding Financial Agreement before marriage, commonly known as a “pre-nuptial agreement”, which has the effect of regulating the division of assets, at least in part, upon separation.

Binding Financial Agreement
Under Australian law, it is possible for couples who are already married to enter into a Binding Financial Agreement that will provide how assets are to be divided if the relationship later breaks down. Both the parties must consent to the Financial Agreement's terms and be independently legally advised, otherwise the agreement will not be binding.

There are a number of formal requirements for both types of these Agreements, and there are also common pitfalls with the drafting of these Agreements.

Parties can enter into a Binding Financial Agreement at any time during the relationship, from when the relationship is planned through to after divorce. Some different considerations apply for when the Agreement is made before, during or after the marriage. De facto couples can enter into a Relationship Agreement at any time before or during the relationship.

We can either draft an Agreement for one party or provide advice on an already prepared Agreement for one party.

For more information on financial agreements please contact Central Coast Family Law by clicking here.

AVO- back

An Apprehended Violence Order (AVO) is an order made by the court that prohibits certain behaviour of the defendant. An Apprehended Violence Order is designed to protect the person making the complaint from future harassment, intimidation, stalking or violence.

An Apprehended Violence Order often states that the person cannot assault, harass, threaten, stalk, intimidate, or go within a certain distance of the home or workplace of the person lodging the complaint.

There are 2 types of Apprehended Violence Orders:

Apprehended Domestic Violence Order (or ADVO). An Apprehended Domestic Violence Order is taken against a family member, spouse or ex spouse / intimate partner.
Apprehended Personal Violence Order (or APVO) An Apprehended Personal Violence Order is used for protection from someone other than family members or spouses / ex spouses – e.g. neighbours

If an Apprehended Violence Order has been made against you, it is wise to seek legal advice. For more information on AVO matters please contact Central Coast Family Law by clicking here.

Wills, Powers of Attorney and Enduring Guardianship- back

Wills
When a significant life event occurs such as marriage, separation or divorce, it is important to consider whether there should be a change to your Will.

Other circumstances that can affect wills include the death of the executor or beneficiary under the will, a change in relationship, the birth or death of children and the acquisition or sale of assets bequeathed in a will.

We can assist you to make or update your will.

Power of Attorney
We can also provide advice on preparing a Power of Attorney, whereby a trusted person can act for you in regard to:

to buying and selling real estate, shares and other assets for you;
to operating your bank accounts;
to spending your money on behalf of you; and
to exercising many other powers.

A Power of Attorney might be useful if you are overseas, ospitalized or no longer capable of looking after your own affairs.

Enduring Guardianship
An Enduring Guardianship is a means by which you can appoint a trusted person to make decisions if you are unable due to some disability to make those decisions for yourself with respect to:

where you live e.g. at home or in a nursing home or a retirement village
to decide what health care you receive, e.g. treating doctor, community health care.
to decide what other personal services you receive, e.g. home support services.
to give consent, subject to the provisions of Part 5 of the Guardianship Act, for any minor and major treatments.

For more information on Wills, Powers of Attorney or Enduring Guardianships please contact Central Coast Family Law by clicking here.

Probate Matters- back

When someone dies leaving a Will, the Executor of the Will has the role of putting into effect the will maker’s wishes, including calling in the will maker’s personal and real property, paying any outstanding debts, and then distributing the net assets to the beneficiaries in accordance with the terms of the Will.

A Grant of Probate is really obtaining authority from the Supreme Court to be able to deal with the deceased person’s assets, after verifying that the Will is valid . Where there is no Will, the Court grants Letters of Administration, appointing an “Administrator” (rather than an Executor) to the Estate.

Administrators and Executors act as trustees with similar responsibilities, and are the personal legal representatives of their respective Estates. When there is no Will and therefore no named beneficiaries, Administrators have the additional responsibility of distributing the Estate’s net assets in accordance with default inheritance laws.

Both Administrators and Executors are answerable to the Supreme Court, and both may be required to file verified Accounts.

For more information on Probate matters please contact Central Coast Family Law by clicking here.