Family law in Queensland

The five decisions a separation forces on you

People arrive at a family lawyer thinking they have one problem. Usually they have five, they run on different tracks, and they run on different clocks.

1. Whether you are separated, and from what date. Nobody files anything to separate. The date still matters, because it starts the clock on divorce and on de facto property claims. See separation.
2. Where the children live and how decisions get made. Since 6 May 2024 this is decided by one test only: the best interests of the child. See parenting and custody.
3. How property and superannuation are divided. A four-step process, not a formula and not a default split. See property settlement.
4. Whether anyone has to support anyone. Spousal maintenance and child support are two separate systems with different tests and different decision makers. See maintenance and child support.
5. How you make the outcome stick. An agreement written on the kitchen table is not enforceable. See legally binding agreements.

Divorce is the sixth item, and for most people it is the least urgent. A divorce order ends the marriage. It does not divide a single dollar, and it does not decide anything about children.

The 6 May 2024 change that many websites still have wrong

On 6 May 2024 the Family Law Amendment Act 2023 (Cth) repealed section 61DA of the Family Law Act. That was the presumption of equal shared parental responsibility. It is gone. There was never a presumption of equal time, but the two were constantly confused in practice, and the repeal removed the foothold for that argument.

What sits there now is section 60CC. The court decides parenting arrangements by asking what is in the best interests of the child, and nothing else. The considerations begin with safety, including safety from family violence, abuse and neglect, and take in the views the child has expressed, the child's developmental, psychological, emotional and cultural needs, each proposed carer's capacity to meet those needs, and the benefit to the child of a relationship with both parents where that is safe. For an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander child the court must also consider the child's right to enjoy their culture.

If a law firm page tells you the court starts from equal shared parental responsibility, it has not been updated in more than two years. That matters, because people make real decisions about their children based on what they read at 2am.

The 10 June 2025 change to how property is divided

The Family Law Amendment Act 2024 (Cth) rewrote the financial provisions with effect from 10 June 2025. The familiar four-step approach survived, but it now appears in section 79 itself instead of being drawn from case law.

• Family violence is expressly relevant to money. The court must consider the effect of family violence on a party's ability to contribute, and the economic effect of family violence on their current and future circumstances.
• Wastage has a tighter test. Property or financial resources that a party intentionally or recklessly wasted, in a material way, can be taken into account.
• Liabilities and housing are named. The nature and effect of debts, and the need to provide appropriate housing for a child under 18, now appear on the face of the section.
• Companion animals have their own rules. A court can decide who keeps the family pet or order that it be sold. It cannot order shared ownership or a care roster for an animal.
• Disclosure sits in the Act. The duty to disclose your financial position fully and to keep disclosing sits in the legislation now, not only in the court rules.

One practical consequence. The old shorthand of "the section 75(2) factors" is no longer accurate for property settlement. Those future needs considerations now live in section 79(5) for married couples and in section 90SM for de facto couples. Section 75(2) is still the list for spousal maintenance, and section 90SF(3) for de facto maintenance.

The deadlines that catch people out

Missing a family law deadline is not always fatal. The court can grant leave to apply out of time under section 44(4) or section 44(6) where hardship would result to a party or a child. Leave is a separate argument you have to win before you get to argue the real case, and it costs money you would rather spend on the settlement. Put the date in a calendar instead.

The estate deadline is the harshest of the set, because a personal representative who distributes the estate after the notice period may leave nothing to claim against.

How we run these matters, and what they cost

Most family law matters never reach a final hearing. The ones that do usually got there because the actual dispute went unaddressed for a year while the letters piled up. We would rather spend your money on a properly drafted set of consent orders than on a fourth affidavit.

We quote a fixed fee in writing for defined pieces of work: a divorce application, a set of consent orders, a binding financial agreement, preparation for a mediation, a first court event. Where a matter is genuinely open ended, we say so rather than quote a number we cannot hold. Barrister fees, court filing fees, valuations and expert reports sit outside the quote and we tell you that at the start. Our fee ranges are published.

A first appointment in a family law matter is $440 including GST, in Southport or Brisbane, by phone or by video. The free 15 minute call we offer on other matters does not extend to family law, because there is nothing useful to be said about a property pool or a parenting arrangement in fifteen minutes. If family violence is part of your situation, say so when you call. Different rules apply, the urgency is different, and the family law and protection order systems interact. See domestic violence and protection orders.