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What is family law
What is family law?
Family law encompasses many areas of family life arising from married or de facto relationships and includes
- property settlement;
- parenting plans and orders regarding care arrangements for children
- spousal maintenance;
- domestic and family violence
Jim’s family law
Our aim is to assist you with your family law matter and resolve it as quickly and as amicably as possible. We will consider all options prior to filing in court including negotiation, mediation and arbitration. We know that when a matter finishes you may still have some sort of relationship with your former partner and so we are motivated to assist you to settle with as little acrimony as the matter allows.
Family law court
The Federal Circuit and Family Court’s family law jurisdiction includes applications for divorce, applications for spousal maintenance, property and financial disputes, parenting orders, enforcement of orders, location and recovery orders, warrants for the apprehension or detention of a child, and determination of parentage.
De facto
De facto couples have the same legal status as married couples in Australia. A common argument for the court to decide is when or even if a de facto relationship exists.
Inheritances
It was a long marriage and the wife had enjoyed a close relationship with the husband’s grandmother. The grandmother bequeathed her estate in equal shares to four beneficiaries, two included the husband and the wife.
Justice Strum noted it was significant the husband’s grandmother had not specifically bequeathed one half of her estate to the husband and the wife jointly, but she had specifically named the wife, her granddaughter-in-law, as a quarter beneficiary.
The husband submitted the wife’s inheritance was a financial contribution made by him, as the wife only received the inheritance by virtue of being married to him.
The court did not accept this the wife’s inheritance was therefore held to be a contribution made by her very late in the marriage, to which the husband made no contribution. And similarly, the husband’s inheritance was held to be a contribution made by him, late in the marriage, without any contribution by the wife.
The court held it was not just and equitable to deal with the inherited assets. Each party simply retained their own inheritances, with the balance of the matrimonial assets being divided between the parties.
In summary, the treatment of inheritances in property settlements, particularly those received late in a relationship or post separation, can be controversial.
This case is an important reminder that every family law matter will depend on its own unique set of facts and circumstances with respect to how inheritances are dealt with
All information on Jim’s website is of a general nature only and is not intended to be relied upon as, nor to be a substitute for, specific legal professional advice. No responsibility for the loss occasioned to any person acting on or refraining from action as a result of any material published can be accepted.