Family lawyers specialize in legal issues that impact families, such as divorce, custody or support disputes. To successfully represent their clients they must possess strong interpersonal, mediation and trial advocacy skills.
Divorce
Divorce (legal dissolution of marriage) is the legal end of a marriage and may involve various issues, such as property division and child custody arrangements. When parties disagree on these issues, litigation may ensue to settle them; this type of contested divorce.
Australian residents can file for divorce if they meet both residency requirements and one of the following grounds for action:
People may file for legal separation instead of divorce; however, evidence must demonstrate that both you and your partner have lived apart for at least 12 months (unless extreme cruelty applies) prior to filing an application online and providing it to a professional process server for service; court dates will then be scheduled, typically several months later than when you submitted the initial paperwork.
Child Custody
As part of a separation, divorce or paternity action, courts will make decisions regarding which parent should have physical and legal custody of any minor children involved. Decisions on custody decisions are determined based on what’s best for each child based on “best interest of the child” criteria that take multiple factors into consideration.
Custody arrangements may take many forms: sole, joint, or temporary. Sole custody allows one parent exclusive decision-making rights and residential responsibility, while joint custody grants both parents equal authority in terms of religious upbringing, education, medical care, and other aspects that impact child development.
While courts should not favor one parent over the other, judges do often exhibit bias based on gender. Therefore, it is wise to consult an experienced family law attorney in order to find an ideal resolution. Typically, courts grant one parent primary custody with visitation rights awarded to the other; our team of professionals can assist in creating a custody arrangement which protects your children while still preserving relationships between parent and child.
Child Support
Child support payments are made between parents as a financial contribution towards meeting their shared child’s basic needs. State guidelines typically use shared monthly income as well as any extra expenses such as health care coverage and day care fees when calculating this contribution.
Courts often order noncustodial parents (obligers) to pay child support to custodial parents (obligees), to cover the expenses incurred from raising children. Payment of child support may also be a requirement of public assistance such as food stamps or Medicaid eligibility.
An obligee or obligor may file for child support modification when their circumstances have altered significantly, necessitating an adjustment to their current amount. Common reasons include earnings fluctuation or medical costs changes for their child requiring adjustment – making filing such petitions for support modification necessary.
Adoption
Adoption is the legal process by which non-biological children become full members of another family, through an adoption. It is an intricate issue which impacts many different individuals and families in various ways.
Hawthorn Family Lawyers offer assistance and representation for individuals and couples considering adoption, birth parents, relatives and kinship caregivers in domestic and international proceedings, professionals sharing resources on adoption with triad members and more.
Before being approved by a court for adoption, petitioning parties must meet several statutory elements. This usually involves being investigated by a state adoption agency that must then provide a report to the court determining if adoptive parents meet all requirements under law for adoptive parentship.
