When you need a family lawyer

When you probably do not need one running your matter

A lawyer who tells you every separation needs full representation is selling something. Some situations genuinely do not.

• A short relationship, no children, no jointly owned property, no superannuation worth splitting and nothing in dispute.
• A joint divorce application after a clean 12 month separation with no children under 18.
• Parents who agree on arrangements for the children and want them written down, where a parenting plan or a set of consent orders is the only document needed.

Even in those cases, advice on the documents is worth more than representation on the dispute. Getting consent orders drafted properly is a fixed-fee task and it is what makes the agreement enforceable. See legally binding agreements.

When you should get advice quickly

1. A deadline is running. Two years from the end of a de facto relationship, 12 months from when a divorce order takes effect, nine months from a death for an estate claim. These are the calls that come in too late.
2. There is superannuation, a business, a trust or a self-managed fund. Structures are where the value hides and where the tax consequences of getting it wrong are largest.
3. There is family violence, or you are frightened. Different rules apply, dispute resolution is not required before filing, and the protection order and family law systems interact. See domestic violence and protection orders.
4. Children are in dispute, or one parent wants to move away. See parenting and custody and relocation and recovery.
5. You have been served with something. Court documents have return dates. Missing one can mean orders are made without you.
6. You are being asked to sign. Never sign a financial agreement without your own independent advice, because that advice is a validity requirement, not a formality.

What the first appointment actually covers

It is not a sales meeting and it is not a therapy session. It is an hour of triage, and you should leave with information whether or not you engage us.

• Where you stand. What the asset pool looks like, roughly where a settlement range sits, and what the parenting position is on the facts you describe.
• What clock is running. The specific dates that apply to your situation, written down.
• What the next three steps are, in order, including the ones you do yourself.
• What it costs. A fixed fee range in writing for the defined work, and an honest statement about anything that cannot be fixed. Filing fees, barristers, valuers and experts are separate and we say so.
• Whether you need us at all. Sometimes the answer is a form, a mediation booking and a follow-up in six weeks.

The appointment is $440 including GST, and it is available at Southport, at Brisbane, by phone or by video. If you have a court date coming up, say so when you call.

What to bring

Bring what you have. Nobody arrives with a complete set and the appointment is still useful without it.

• The date of separation, and how you know it.
• Any court documents, protection order applications or letters from the other side.
• A rough list of assets and debts, in both names and each name, with approximate values.
• Recent superannuation statements for both of you if you have them.
• Payslips or the last two tax returns.
• Children's dates of birth and the current arrangements.
• Any parenting plan, agreement or previous orders.

A rough list beats no list, and an estimate beats a blank. We can obtain formal disclosure later. What we cannot do in the first hour is guess at numbers you have not thought about.

To book, call 07 5522 5777 or use the contact page. For the full picture of what family law covers, start at the family law hub.