family lawyers brisbane cbd

   Elton John and his partner David may not be considered the parents of their children in Australia. Under the provisions of the Family Law Act parents are responsible for the care, welfare, and development of their children. The parents may be married or living in a de facto relationship. In both instances, the children of that relationship are recognized as the children of their parents. This extends to a lesbian couple living in a de facto relationship. The mother of a child in a lesbian de facto relationship is the parent of that child if the child was conceived by artificial insemination. The partner of the mother would also be considered a parent of the child under the provisions of the Family Law Act. The child is of course the child of the mother who gave birth to the child. Gay and Lesbian De Facto Couples and Parenting This does not extend to males in a gay de facto relationship even if one of the males donated sperm for the conception of the child. The biological m...

    Superannuation and Family Law In 2002 there were amendments to the Family Law Act which allowed superannuation to be treated as  property . The Court was empowered to make Orders splitting superannuation entitlements, transferring entitlements from one party to the other. Of course, the splitting of a person’s superannuation entitlement and a transfer of that entitlement does not mean that the person receiving the benefit of that entitlement could immediately draw down on the interest received. The normal provisions for drawing down on superannuation would. Under the legislation, if a splitting Order was made then one person would obtain an interest in the other person’s superannuation fund. A party could retain that interest in the fund or roll it out into a fund of their own choosing. Prior to 2002 and the reason why this legislation was introduced into the  Family Law  Act was that in many cases married couples have had small property interests ...

  As reported recently in a ‘very reliable’ gossip magazine, Kim Kardashian and Kanye West’s marriage is on life support right now, but don’t expect a Court showdown if they do go their separate ways. Radaronline.com has learned the couple has hammered out an agreement on how to potentially divide their assets – including the kids – in the event of a split. The benefit of a Financial Agreement One would assume that Kim Kardashian would hold onto her cash worth millions as well, although this is not stated in the article. We can only assume that Kanye would hold onto enough cash to make his life happy but not to the extent of Kim. Kim has primary custody of the children, North and Saint. Kanye no doubt has visiting rights and will spend time with them. A dignified resolution. No fighting in the Courts. The Agreement spells everything out and their financial settlement will be in accordance with the terms of the Agreement. Minimum hassle. In Australia parties also have the benef...

    Families and Children look set to suffer more in Queensland than anywhere else in Australia Court. If you are contemplating going to either the Family Court of Australia or Federal Circuit Court of Australia to settle issues relating to the breakdown of your relationship including issues surrounding who your children spend time with, you could be in for a rude shock. It now seems certain that timeframes for your matter to be heard will increase considerably due to the movement away from the Brisbane Registry of the Family Court and to the Appeal division of such Court. Justice Graham Bell retired last year and it was announced in late 2015 that Justice Michael Kent was promoted to the Appeal division of the  Family Court .  Judge Demack of the Federal Circuit Court in Brisbane has accepted a permanent posting in Rockhampton further depleting the stock of family law judges in Brisbane. This means that now there are only two judges sitting in the trial di...

    What a year it’s been. Winding up the practice in South Brisbane and moving to the big smoke in March this year. 2015 Family Law Review: What A Year It’s Been and to have their assistance when dealing with the complex issues which can arise in the breakup of entities, partnerships and trust and determining the best ways of restructuring such entities after a family break up. The knowledge of the lawyers in the firm has been invaluable in dealing with the complex issues which arise from time to time. The Family Law Section of the practice now has 2 Accredited  Family Law Specialists  and a very experienced family solicitor who practices exclusively in Family Law Review. We also have the benefit of a very experienced Family Law in house counsel. It has been invaluable to maintain the family law matters “in house” when dealing with a matter in the Family Court. The benefits and cost savings to our clients have been appreciated. Our family lawyer Charles ex...

    The world knows all too well about how your interest rates can dramatically change from one month to the next and if you get yourself in a good position, you lock that RBA interest rate in for a few years to protect yourself from being knocked out by a rise in the RBA interest rate (RBA cash rate). For 3 years the RBA rate remained at 1.50%, which for some was great as no rise in an otherwise ever-changing world meant that homeowners could keep their properties. For others,  the cost of living was still too high to save a deposit for a house . Then in mid-2019, we saw a drop of 0.25% bringing the rate down to 1.25% which for anyone struggling to pay their mortgage meant this was a big stress relief or for some of us, helped to apply for a home loan to be more achievable. The rate continued on this downward trend dropping by 0.25% again and again which brings us to today at an incredible low of 0.10%. On top of that, the Government is currently offering $15,000 to...

     Financial Windfall: A Joy or Tragedy What to do if you win the lotto? How does the Family Court view it? A windfall is either a sizable inheritance or a lotto win.  In the eyes of the Family Court, an inheritance is treated differently to a lotto win. The Family Court has great difficulty in distinguishing a lotto win by one party as a sole financial contribution by that party to the assets of the marriage and in most cases treats lotto wins as joint contributions. That is, that if during the period of a relationship be it a marriage or  de facto relationship , one party receives a sizable lotto win and that win is then applied towards the improvements or acquisition of matrimonial assets, the Court would deem that both parties have equally contributed to both the acquisition and improvement to those assets. In one case a wife and husband maintained sole financial estates. They owned property in their respective names solely and operated their own bank acco...

    Did you know the term ‘ Child Custody ’ is no longer referred to in the Family Law Legislation? It was the term used previously by the Family Court. It was considered that Child Custody donated property rights to children that are that one party owned the children whilst the other party had the rights to have the children visit from time to time. It was considered that the term should be changed to the children living with one party and spending time with the other party. These are the terms that are now used by the Court when making parenting orders.  This came into effect in 2006. Decisions in cases involving disputes about where the children should live and how much time they should spend with the other parent or other significant adults in their lives are now made pursuant to the  Family Law Act . The Attorney General when making changes to the Family Law Act summarised the principles as follows: “The law will take the view that parenting is a responsibility ...

   Prenuptial and Postnuptial Agreements and information relating to Pre Nups & Financial Agreements in Brisbane. Prenuptial agreements and binding financial agreements will set out exactly how all or any of the assets, (owned by you at the date of signing the agreement or acquired after signing the agreement), will be divided between you and your partner in the event of breakdown of the marriage or the de facto relationship. The agreement may allow for maintenance issues to be dealt with in marriages and de facto relationships, after divorce or separation. If you are contemplating marriage or entering a de facto relationship, it is a good idea to get a lawyer to draft and execute a prenuptial agreement/financial agreement for you. You can also have a prenuptial agreement/financial agreement drawn up during your relationship. This will safeguard your personal assets in the event your relationship does not work out. Always know your legal options by consulting an Accre...

   Aylward Game Solicitors Incorporating James Noble Family Law Brisbane is an Accredited Specialist  Family Lawyer  with Queensland Law Society. Breaking up or separating is a traumatic and difficult time for any adult. But for couples with children, often the first thought is of the impact it will have on the children. The second thought is almost always to wonder what the law says about parenting arrangements and how the separation will affect future contact with the children. At all times, you should be fully informed about your legal rights and position as well as those of the children involved. If you are separating obtain full details about the parenting of your children, your rights, and obligations. For more information please visit our blog on Child Custody. At Family Law, our team can talk you through the underlying legal principles and explain what confusing terms such as equal shared parental responsibility, and significant and substantial time mean for ...