Family Law
Clear advice at the hardest time
Separation, parenting arrangements, property settlements and financial agreements, led by a lawyer who is also a nationally accredited mediator. Settled where it can be, and run properly in court where it cannot.
What we do
Family law, by stage
Most family matters move through the same stages: the separation itself, arrangements for children, dividing property, and the agreements that record it all. Many of our clients own a business or hold property through a company or trust, which changes how the property side is worked out, and that is the work this firm already does every week.
How we work
Advice before decisions
What the law does with your situation, explained before anyone commits to a position.
Children
Parenting arrangements that hold
Agreement first, recorded properly. Court only where it is the right answer.
Property
Dividing what you built
Homes, superannuation, companies and trusts, worked out by lawyers who deal with them every week.
01
Separation and divorce
The first decisions, and the clock they start
Separation has legal consequences from the day it happens, whether or not either of you moves out. We explain what changes immediately, what can wait, and the time limits that follow: a divorce application needs twelve months of separation, and a property or maintenance application generally has to be made within twelve months of a divorce order, or within two years of separation for a de facto couple.
- What separation means while still under one roof
- Divorce applications, sole and joint
- Time limits for property and maintenance claims
- Where safety is a concern, urgent orders first
02
Parenting arrangements
Children first, and agreement before court
The law decides parenting questions on what is in the best interests of the child, and it expects parents to try to agree before they ask a court to decide. Most do, through a parenting plan or consent orders. Where that is not possible, family dispute resolution is usually required before a parenting application can be filed, and we prepare you for it rather than sending you in cold.
03
Property settlement
Dividing what you built
A property settlement looks at everything either of you owns or owes, what each of you contributed, financially and otherwise, and what each of you needs going forward, then asks whether the outcome is just and equitable. Superannuation is included and can be split. The result is recorded in consent orders or a financial agreement so that it is final.
- Identifying and valuing the property pool
- Contributions, including homemaker and parent contributions
- Future needs, income and the care of children
- Superannuation splitting
- Consent orders that bind both parties
04
When there is a business in the pool
Where a commercial firm earns its place
A company, a trust, a franchise or a professional practice is often the largest asset and the hardest to divide. It has to be valued, it usually has to keep trading, and a shareholders agreement, trust deed or franchise agreement may dictate what can happen to it on separation. This firm has structured, bought and sold these businesses for thirteen years. That is the difference between a settlement that works on paper and one that works for the business.
05
Financial agreements
Agreeing in advance, or at the end
A binding financial agreement can be made before, during or after a relationship, and it settles how property will be dealt with if the relationship ends. It is only binding if each party has independent legal advice and the formalities are met, so the drafting and the advice matter as much as the deal. We prepare them, advise on them, and tell you plainly when one is not the right tool.
How we work
Three steps
01
A first conversation
You tell us where things are. We tell you what the law does with that, what the next step is and what it will cost.
02
A plan and an agreed scope
Every matter has a written scope and a quoted fee for each stage, so there is no surprise invoice at the point you can least afford one.
03
Resolution first, court if needed
Most matters settle, and settling early protects both the money and the children. Where court is the right answer, we run it properly.
Who you will work with
Consultant Lawyer
Damian Bourke
A lawyer, nationally accredited mediator and family dispute resolution practitioner, with thirty years in property development and finance and earlier work as a building surveyor and inspector. Damian has sat on the client’s side of complex deals and brings both commercial judgment and steadiness to a hard matter.
Special Counsel
Rebecca McAllum
More than ten years across litigation, corporate and commercial law and regulatory matters, with a Bachelor of Laws (Hons) from Auckland and a Masters from Oxford. Rebecca is known for clear, strategic advice and for finding the practical outcome in a complex dispute.
Special Counsel
Lorraine Lim
Over 18 years as a commercial solicitor in Malaysia and Australia, including as a partner of a boutique firm. Lorraine leads the firm’s property and conveyancing work and the loan and security documents that sit behind a purchase, with a steady, results-driven approach clients come back to.
Client feedback
Voices of excellence
Live rating and reviews from the firm’s Google Business Profile.
Common questions
Family law questions, answered
Do we have to go to court?
Usually not. Most parenting and property matters settle by agreement, recorded in consent orders or a financial agreement. Court is for the matters that cannot be resolved any other way, and we tell you early if yours looks like one of them.
How long do I have after we separate?
For a married couple, a property or maintenance application generally has to be filed within twelve months of the divorce order. For a de facto couple, within two years of separation. Leave can be sought outside those limits, but it is not guaranteed, so the timing is worth raising early.
What happens to the business?
It is part of the property pool and has to be valued. Whether it is kept by one party, sold, or restructured depends on the numbers, the other assets and what any shareholders, trust or franchise documents allow. We work through those documents before anyone proposes a figure.
Can we sort it out ourselves without lawyers?
You can agree the terms yourselves, and many couples do. To make the agreement final and enforceable it needs to be recorded in consent orders or a binding financial agreement, and a financial agreement requires each party to have had independent legal advice. We can do only that part if that is all you need.
Also relevant
Related services
Property & conveyancing
Transfers between separating parties and the sale of the family home.
Related reading
Family Law reading
Articles and briefings from the firm on this area. Plain English, no lecture.
Next step
Separating, or thinking about it?
Tell us where things stand and we will tell you what the next step is, and what it costs. The first conversation is complimentary.