Parents can enter into a private child support agreement, either limited or binding. A limited agreement doesn’t require legal advice, while a binding agreement does. These documents allow more flexibility than the government formula but must meet strict legal criteria to be enforceable. The experienced team at Lynn & Brown Lawyers can help you draft or review these agreements to protect your interests.
While you can manage child support through Services Australia, legal advice is strongly recommended especially for private agreements, disputes, or when circumstances change. A qualified child support lawyer in Perth can ensure your arrangement is fair, enforceable, and tailored to your child’s best interests. We help you avoid costly mistakes and protect your rights.
If you cannot support yourself adequately after separation, and your former partner has the capacity to pay, you may be eligible for spousal maintenance. This depends on factors like your income, health, ability to work, and whether children are involved. All of these factors are considered in achieving an equitable and just outcome for both parties.
Generally, yes. De facto couples in WA have similar rights and responsibilities as married couples when it comes to property division, spousal maintenance, and parenting arrangements. However, proving the nature of the relationship can sometimes be complex, and can lead to dispute or confusion. Legal advice can clear the air and provide the clarity and answers you and your partner need.
Property can be divided in a similar way to a divorce. The Family Court considers each partner’s financial and non-financial contributions and aims for a fair and equitable outcome. It’s important to act quickly after separation, as there are time limits for making a claim. Get in touch with the experienced team at Lynn & Brown Lawyers today.
Child support is calculated using a formula set by Services Australia. It considers both parents’ incomes, the percentage of time each parent cares for the child, and the number of children. This formula aims to ensure both parents contribute fairly to the costs of raising their children. Private agreements can also be made, but they should be documented properly with the guidance and expertise of legal experts.
If payments stop, you can contact and ask Services Australia to enforce the assessment or agreement. They have powers to collect unpaid support through wage deductions, tax returns, and other methods. Legal advice such as that provided by the team at Lynn & Brown may also help you recover unpaid amounts or negotiate a new agreement if your situation has changed.
You can protect your assets by entering into a Binding Financial Agreement (BFA). This legal document outlines how property and finances will be handled if the relationship ends. It’s essential to have the agreement drafted and reviewed by an experienced family lawyer to ensure it’s legally enforceable. Our team of experts always approaches such documents with sensitivity and care.
A de facto relationship is one where two people live together as a couple on a genuine domestic basis but are not married. In WA, the Family Court may recognise a relationship as de facto if it lasted at least two years or if there’s a child from the relationship, among other factors. It can be hard to tell what legal bearing your de facto relationship has on both parties, or if you do indeed meet the criteria for a de facto relationship. It’s important to get clarity with trusted experts when questions arise.
Yes, but usually only through a formal agreement. The standard child support formula doesn’t automatically include private school fees or extracurricular costs. However, parents can agree to include these costs in a private agreement, or apply to the court for additional financial orders. It’s best to get legal advice on how to structure this properly. There can be a number of grey areas that can cause confusion and raise valid questions at different stages in yours and your children’s lives.
Typically, child support continues until the child turns 18. In some cases, it may continue beyond 18 if the child is still in secondary school or has special needs. Parents can also make financial arrangements to support children after 18 through adult child maintenance applications. Our team of family law lawyers can help with these extended arrangements including advice, drafting and representation.
In Western Australia, you generally have two years from the date of separation to apply to the Family Court for property settlement or spousal maintenance. It’s best to seek legal advice early to avoid missing this deadline. Putting off asking questions and seeking the right legal support or advice can put both parties in a much more difficult situation, leading to much more difficult conversations.
The division of assets in the relationship isn’t automatically a 50:50 split. Instead, it’s based on each party’s contributions to acquiring assets and caring for the family, as well as considering the future needs of both parties. This process is known as property division or property settlement.
Litigation (going to court) may not be the best solution to a conflict. To avoid litigating a dispute, some of the alternative ways to resolve a dispute are mediation, negotiation and arbitration to find a constructive solution to resolving the dispute without having to go to court.
Operating your business or investments through a company provides a lot of protection for those operating the company, known as directors. However, increasingly, in Australia the protection of directors is being wound back. Directors can be liable for some company’s debts, such as, PAYG and staff superannuation. Also, if the company trades insolvently and certain occupational health and safety penalties.
Obtaining a divorce and obtaining a property settlement are separate legal matters, independent of each other. While one doesn’t necessarily require the other, they often coincide in the process of ending a marriage. Couples can negotiate and reach a property settlement agreement before finalizing their divorce, however, if parties divorce, the time starts ticking down to reach a property settlement – the limitation is 12 months for the date of the divorce.
In family law, when a parent considers moving with their child far away from their usual residence, the matter is termed a ‘relocation case’.
Typically, if a parent plans to relocate with their child, the other parent must either agree to the move or the parent who wants the move should seek permission from the Family Court. This requirement is based on the understanding that relocating with a child can significantly impact their ability to maintain meaningful relationships with both parents and other significant individuals, such as grandparents.
Contracts are everywhere in our life, from simple sale and purchase agreements, service supply, property leasing, to employment, banking and investments. Like many of us, you may have been stuck in a contract and wanted to get out. Can you? There are different ways to end a contract. However, contracts are binding legal instruments, so a free exit ticket may not always be available.
One of the most satisfying tasks we perform at Lynn and Brown Lawyers is to work with our clients to either establish, purchase or sell a business. We all know how stressful it is buying or selling a property and hoping to achieve a successful outcome. These stresses are no different to those that exist around buying or selling a business, particularly if that business is one you have built from scratch or the business that you are looking to buy is as a result of a significant lifestyle change or ambition for the next stage of your career.