Public Seminars Start this Month

Do you want to know more about separation, property settlements and children’s arrangements but without all the unnecessary legal jargon? Our first Seminar Series for the year will provide you with the opportunity to get up to date information on Family Law in an easy-to-follow 1 hour seminar.

There are 2 Seminar topics being presented by Principal and Accredited Specialist, Michael Lynch, including “Separation and Children” and “Separation and Property”. For only $20 you will receive information valued at over $500, as well as the opportunity to ask questions and there will be a Special Offer for all attendees.

The seminars will be held at different locations around Brisbane.

“Separation & Property”:

• Sunnybank: 6:00pm – Tuesday, 28 February, Sunnybank Community and Sports Club, 470 McCullough Street.
• Brisbane City: 1:00pm – Tuesday, 6 March, The Sebel Suites, 95 Charlotte St.

“Separation & Children”:

•  Grange: 6:00pm – Wednesday, 29 February, Crushers Leagues Club, 41 Agincourt St.
• Springwood: 6:00pm – Wednesday, 7 March, Springwood Hotel, Cnr Springwood & Rochedale Rds.

Book your seat now! Phone 3221 4300 or email [email protected]– seats are limited!!

‘Close-up’ Edition

Many people who have separated don’t realise that superannuation is included in a property settlement. Not only is it valued and included, but it can also be split in different percentage amounts. When does splitting occur and what information is needed to split super? Read ‘Understanding ‘Splitting Super’ to find out more.

The Court Signs

Often the Court may make an Order in a property settlement that will require one spouse to transfer property to the other. What happens if one party refuses to sign the property ‘transfer’?

Section 106A of the Family Law Act provides a Registrar of the Court with the power to sign the transfer document in place of the delaying spouse, so a property transfer can proceed.

A Co-Dependent Parent-Child Relationship

The Family Law Act requires that parenting arrangements should be made in the child’s ‘best interests’. Considering this in the context of how parent/child relationships develop after a separation, it is often a real issue.

What happens if the parent/child relationship is becoming co-dependent? This was considered in a recent Court case.

The Mother and Father were together for six years and had a child, aged 11.

• During the relationship the Mother was the child’s primary carer.
• The Father had a previous criminal history from when the child was young.
• At separation the child lived with the Father, as the Mother did not have suitable accommodation.
• The Father took the child with him on a holiday to Cairns without the Mother’s consent and then proceeded to enrol the child for one week at a school in Cairns.
• The Father then told the Mother that he and the child were moving to a town 20 minutes from Darwin, however he then moved with the child to Melbourne.
• For the next three months the Mother tried to speak to the child unsuccessfully, as the Father was hindering communication between the child and the Mother.
• The Mother filed a Court Application seeking that the child live with her.
• The Father opposed the Mother’s proposal and wanted the child to live with him.
• The parents had decided on a school in Melbourne that the child would attend if she remained there, however the Father enrolled the child in a different school without consulting the Mother, saying he was acting upon the child’s wishes.

• The Family Report writer was concerned that the Father had established a dependent relationship between himself and the child. It was noted that the Father did not understand that the child needed to have a substantial relationship with the Mother.
• The child expressed the view that the Father needed ‘more looking after’ than the Mother, which the Family Report writer found ‘disturbing’. It was recommended that it was in the best interests of the child that she be returned to Darwin.
• The child wanted to reside in Melbourne with the Father.

Court Found:

• The Father did not act in the child’s best interests and behaved in a manipulative way, believing that the possession of the child would ensure the Mother’s return to him.
• The child’s wishes could not be taken into consideration. The Father had over-involved her in adult decisions, which meant her views could not be given critical weight.

 Court Order:

• The child live with the Mother in Darwin and spend time with the Father during the school holidays and as otherwise agreed between the parents.