Dispute Resolution
Why should I hire a Family Lawyer

What is a Family Lawyer and what do they do?

A Family Lawyer is a lawyer who specialises in the following areas of law:

  • Divorce
  • Property settlements with your former husband/ wife or de facto partner
  • Parenting settlements where you and your former partner share children
  • Children’s Court matters

Family Lawyers can provide you with advice on your matter, the range of outcomes that you will achieve if you go to Court, assist you in settling your matter outside of Court, provide you with alternate options to Court proceedings, assist you in negotiating an agreement with your former spouse, prepare and file documents required by the Court and appear on your behalf in Court hearings.

How can a Family Lawyer assist with my Divorce?

A Family Lawyer will prepare the forms required by the Court, file the forms, serve your former spouse with the documents and appear at the Divorce Hearing. A Family Lawyer will also assist you in preparing applications or Affidavits which may be required, for example when:

  • You cannot locate your former partner in order to serve them with the documents;
  • Your former partner disagrees with your separation date; or
  • You have been living separated under the same roof within the 12 month period prior to filing a divorce application.

Improper filing or failure to comply with the Court Rules could result in your divorce application being dismissed.

 How can a Family Lawyer assist with my Property and Parenting matter?

A Family Lawyer can assist you in your property and parenting matter by:

  • Negotiating consent orders with your former partner;
  • Assessing any risks of harm to the children of your relationship and methods to reduce the risks of harm;
  • Assisting and attending alternative dispute resolution with you (such as mediation) prior to filing the matter in Court;
  • Providing you with advice on the range of outcomes you are likely to achieve if a Court were to decide your matter;
  • Assist you in preparing and filing an Application to the Court;
  • Assist you in filing subpoenas and exchanging disclosure with your former partner; and
  • Appear at all hearings on your behalf.

A Family Lawyer will be experienced with how Courts exercise their jurisdiction and be able to advise you on the best case you should put forward to achieve the outcome you are seeking. They will also issue subpoenas, obtain searches and prepare documents such as a Notice to Produce Documents to enable you to obtain evidence to prove your case.

If you are not properly appraised and advised on the outcomes you should receive, you may unknowingly enter into consent orders or an agreement with your spouse which is manifestly unfair or outside the scope of outcomes a Court is likely to award you. Improper preparation of cases and presentation of evidence may also cause you to achieve significantly less if a Judge were to decide your matter.

Domestic Violence

If you are a victim of domestic violence, a Family Lawyer can also assist you in obtaining a private or Police ADVO to ensure that you are protected against your former partner.

The Benefits of Engaging a Family Lawyer

If you were to engage one of our Family Lawyers, you would achieve the following benefits:

  • Our Principal, Michael Vassili has over 30 years of experience dealing with complex Family Law property and parenting matters including Children’s Court matters.
  • 95% of our matters are settled without proceeding to a Final Hearing as we have a strong focus on alternate dispute resolution, and in fact our Principal is an accredited specialist in Dispute Resolution.
  • We provide you with written advice such that you can be appraised of the risks, prospects of success and range of outcomes you may achieve in your matter.
  • We are experienced advocates and our lawyers will appear for you at hearings. We also have a range of external Barristers who we can brief to assist if you require a second opinion.

 

If you require assistance with your Family Law Matter please contact our office on 1300 557 819 or admin@cityprosecutor.com.au to discuss your matter with one of our capable Family Lawyers.