Family lawyers on the Gold Coast

Two different courts, two different problems

A lot of Gold Coast families end up in both systems at once, and confusing them costs time and money.

Parenting arrangements, property settlement, spousal maintenance and divorce are federal. They run under the Family Law Act 1975 (Cth) in the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia, which circuits to Southport and also sits in Brisbane at the Harry Gibbs Commonwealth Law Courts, 119 North Quay.

A domestic violence protection order is a state matter under the Domestic and Family Violence Protection Act 2012 (Qld) and is heard by a magistrate at Southport, Coolangatta or Beenleigh. It is not a family law order and it does not decide who the children live with, but the conditions on it can cut across a parenting arrangement immediately. If you have a protection order application and a parenting dispute at the same time, they have to be handled together.

What a Gold Coast property pool usually looks like

There is no automatic fifty fifty split in Australia. The court works through the four step process under section 79 of the Family Law Act 1975 (Cth): identify and value the asset pool, assess contributions, assess future needs under section 75(2), and then ask whether the result is just and equitable.

On the Gold Coast the fight is usually about step one, not step two.

• Self employment and cash businesses. Hospitality, trades, beauty, personal training, tourism operators. Income shown on a tax return is often not the income the household actually lived on, and proving that takes bank statements and business records, not accusations.
• Short stay and investment property. Units at Surfers Paradise, Broadbeach and Main Beach held for short stay letting, sometimes with body corporate levies and management rights arrangements that complicate valuation.
• Development and construction exposure. House and land in the northern corridor at Coomera, Pimpama and Upper Coomera, often bought off the plan, sometimes worth less than the debt against it.
• Superannuation. Splittable under the Act, frequently the second largest asset, and routinely ignored by people trying to do a deal at the kitchen table.
• Assets across the border. Property held in New South Wales does not fall outside the pool because it is in another state.

You do not need to have divorced to sort out property, and you should not wait. Once a divorce order takes effect you have twelve months to apply for property orders under section 44(3) of the Act. For de facto couples the deadline is two years from the end of the relationship under section 44(5).

Relocation, which the Gold Coast produces more of than most places

People move to the Gold Coast for a relationship. When the relationship ends, the parent who moved often wants to go back, and the other parent does not want the children going anywhere. This is one of the hardest categories of parenting dispute and the Gold Coast generates a lot of it.

The distances vary and so does the difficulty. A move to Brisbane is manageable. A move to Melbourne, Perth or Auckland is not, and the court will not simply approve it because one parent is unhappy here.

The test is what is in the best interests of the child, under section 60CC of the Family Law Act 1975 (Cth), which was substantially reworked by amendments that commenced in 2024. The court considers safety, the benefit of a relationship with both parents where it is safe, the child’s views, and the practical effect of the arrangements proposed. A relocation application succeeds or fails on the quality of the proposal, including how the children will keep a real relationship with the parent left behind and who pays for the travel.

If you are thinking about moving with the children, get advice before you go. Moving first and asking later can result in a recovery order. See relocation and recovery orders.

Mediation before court, and why it usually works

Before you can file a parenting application you generally need a section 60I certificate from a registered family dispute resolution practitioner, unless an exception such as family violence or urgency applies.

This is not a formality to be endured. Most Gold Coast parenting matters resolve at or after mediation, and the ones that do finish faster, cheaper and with arrangements the parents actually follow, because they wrote them. A court imposed parenting order between two people who hate each other is a poor substitute for an agreement.

If you reach agreement, it can be made binding as a consent order without either of you attending court. See binding agreements and consent orders.

How we work on Gold Coast family matters

The first appointment is free and it is where you find out whether you actually need litigation. Frequently you do not, and we will say so.

Bring what you have: a rough asset and debt list, superannuation statements, the date of separation, and any court documents already served. If there is a protection order or an application on foot, bring that too.

Our Southport office is at Level 1, 52 Davenport Street. Fees are quoted in writing before we start, and we tell you what falls outside them, including filing fees and barrister fees.