Family Law

If your marriage or relationship has broken down, we can help you resolve any problems quickly and efficiently.

If you are having trouble arranging access to your children, one of our Family Lawyers can help you establish a workable solution. We can also help you decide on final property settlement terms.

There is no need to spend thousands of dollars on legal fees in relation to any family law problem. We can help resolve children, property and financial disputes quickly and fairly.

Our main areas of practice in family law are:

Divorce and separation
Property Settlements – (division of property and assets)
Child custody and child support
Access, contact and spending time with children
Applications when Court Orders are disobeyed (Contravention Applications)
Spouse maintenance
Prenuptial and cohabitation agreements

Anderson Boemi Lawyers not only have experienced practitioners skilled in the area of family law, we also have a team of criminal lawyers to provide assistance where ADVO’s are present or required.

Contact our team to find out what you need to do and how we can help you.

Divorce

A divorce is the dissolution of the marriage only.You must understand that a divorce does not solve problems with children or property (ie money). Children and property matters are dealt with seperately.

Applying for a divorce is an emotional and difficult decision to make. Before you are granted a divorce by the Court, you must do the following:

1. You must be separated for at least one year

You need to identify the final date of separation. There are exceptions for circumstances where you and your partner are separated, but still live under the same roof.

2. Complete and file a Divorce Application

Once your application has been accepted by the Court and you have received the application back with a Court Seal you must then give a copy of the sealed document to your spouse.

3. Give (or serve) a copy of the Divorce Application to your spouse

Be careful, the rules for serving documents are strict and the application must be served within twenty eight days of the hearing date. If this step is not followed correctly, the process could break down and cause further delay.

4. Attending Court for your divorce hearing

If both you and your partner agree to the Divorce, then there is no need to attend Court, however, if children are involved, it is recommended you attend the hearing.

Your divorce will become final (meaning the marriage is legally dissolved) ONE MONTH after the divorce Order is granted by the Court. This is known as a decree absolute.

Contact our Family Law team and speak with one of our experienced Divorce Lawyers so we can help make this process as quick as possible.

“No- Fault” Divorce Principle in Australia.

The Family Law Act 1975 established the ‘no- fault’ divorce principle in Australian Law. This means that the courts do not take into account the reason for a breakdown of a marriage when dealing with an application for divorce.

The only ground necessary for a divorce is to establish to the court that the marriage has broken down irretrievably. This essentially means, that there is no reasonable likelihood that you and your partner will get back together.

Property Settlement

At Anderson Boemi Lawyers we understand that the circumstances surrounding your family law dispute are unique to you.

Rest assured, our family lawyers are experienced in dealing with the property settlement process. Not only will our team explain the process to you step-by-step, we will also make it a priority to ensure that you understand the separation process and the implications of properly disclosing all your assets and how those assets should be divided between the parties.

Our team can then help you with any property transfers that may be needed as a consequence of Court Orders.

Children

Divorce can be challenging for both you and your children. Explaining to children what a “divorce” is, is a challenge in itself. This clip helps address this challenging issue. http://www.sesamestreet.org/toolkits/divorce

Family Dispute Resolution

Family Dispute Resolution (FDR) concentrates on resolving specific disputes between people affected by separation and divorce without going to Court. Issues involving property, money and children, are suitable for FDR.

FDR practitioners are impartial third parties who help explore your family issues without taking sides. Family Dispute Resolution is confidential (except in specific circumstances such as where family violence is present) and aims to resolve disputes by agreement between the parties, saving time, money and stress.

The law now requires couples to attend FDR in a genuine attempt to resolve disputes before applying to a Court for a parenting Order. If the dispute cannot be resolved, an accredited FDR practitioner can provide the appropriate certificate to the Court so that legal proceedings can be started.

Marissa Boemi is an accredited Family Dispute Practitioner and can help you through the mediation process. Alternatively, Marissa is able to provide you with the necessary certificate before your matter proceeds to litigation.

Collaborative Law

Collaborative Law is an alternative approach to settling disputes, rather than going to Court.

If you decide to undertake the collaborative process, then you make a commitment with the other party and your Lawyers to attempt to resolve your dispute through negotiation, by working together to find a workable solution. You enter into a ‘participation agreement’ which disqualifies either sides lawyer from commencing future litigation in relation to the family dispute.

The Collaborative approach usually consists of “4-way” face-to-face meetings with each party and their lawyer. This means correspondence between lawyers is minimised, instead you have a more ‘hands on’ approach to resolving the dispute, and you are assisted by skilled lawyers who are trained to negotiate and reach compromised settlement, suitable for both parties concerned.

Contact us if you think the Collaborative Process could work for you. We have trained lawyers who can evaluate your situation and help you achieve a collaborated outcome without the stress and expense of litigation.

Learn more about Collaborative Professionals at www.collabprofessionalsnsw.org.au.