Do pets form part of the asset pool?

Frequently we refer to pets as our ‘fur babies’ and we treat them as our children and part of our family, but you may wonder what happens in the event of separation.

As restrictions are eased one step further, it is becoming clear that the recent pandemic and the associated quarantine will have lasting effects.

In a majority of cases, those effects are, and will be, undoubtedly negative. It heartening to take note of the few areas where the pandemic has resulted in a lasting and positive change. In a Family Law context, one such area is the process for making Applications for Family Violence Restraining Orders (“FRVOs”).

Risk can come in different forms in Parenting matters. The risk of drug abuse appears to be more prevalent than before, leaving people with issues in both Family Law and Criminal Law.

At Butlers we have encountered an increasing number of examples of Elder Abuse over the last five years.

Recently a woman has sparked a massive debate online after she revealed her husband was refusing to put her name on his house deed because she did not contribute financially. Parties often want to know whether they are “entitled” to a share of their partner’s assets when they haven’t contributed financially and it is a common assumption that once parties are married, they each receive 50% of the asset pool.

What happens if one party makes no financial contributions?

This is a common question asked during Family Law proceedings which has a specific legal answer to it.

The Christmas holidays are usually a wonderful time of the year where families all get together and celebrate. However, for some separated families with children, these holidays bring about a period of sadness, stress and bitterness that can be managed with proper prior planning.

As Family Lawyers, we see this far too often and sadly, we also see it far too late. The Family Court has a cut-off date for Christmas contact applications. This year, The Family Court is only accepting these applications until 13 November 2020. After this time, it is likely that you may not get a hearing until after Christmas or even early 2021.

In today’s blog, we will suggest some ways to organise parenting arrangements over the Christmas period with a 5-step plan. Hopefully, this will enable children to be able to spend quality time with both parents.

The world we live in is fragile and subject to unforeseen and unfortunate events. It is a reoccurring nightmare of mine to think about what might happen if, for whatever reason, my daughter was no longer safe or no longer had appropriate care. This nightmare extends to include all children in my life, including my nieces and nephews, my friends’ children, and even one day, my grandchildren.

The Mother Always Gets The Children

First and foremost, parents do not have “rights” in relation to their children.  Parents have responsibilities.  The law presumes that parents have equal shared parental responsibility for their children and that is the starting point for resolving parenting matters.

Separating from a partner can be daunting and often people do not know the necessary steps to take when they are trying to navigate the separation of assets, and making arrangements for their children.

The long awaited decision in Thorne & Kennedy has today been delivered by the High Court.

Background

The case concerned Ms Thorne an Eastern European woman living in the Middle East who, at 36 met Mr Kennedy, 67, online. Mr Kennedy was estimated to have personal wealth of between $18 million and $24 million.

They embarked on a relationship, with Ms Thorne moving to Australia to marry Mr Kennedy having been told that she would “have to sign paper”. Ms Thorne bought no assets with her.

Are you one of the 17 million Australians using Facebook? Have you ever vented on Facebook in a moment of anger or frustration? Be warned - your electronic communications can be readily accessed and used to your detriment in the Family Court.

Social media platforms are public forums and, depending on privacy settings, whatever a person shares on social media forms part of the public domain and can often be accessed by anybody at any time.

Deadline - Did you know that the Family Court have a deadline for Orders regarding children’s living arrangements for Christmas?

For most every family, Christmas is a happy but also stressful time. Whether it is ensuring there are no gift double-ups, Santa’s true identity remains undiscovered, or that there are no pistachios in the salad as Aunty Laura’s allergic, chaos is a part and parcel of the end of the year.

When mum and dad are no longer together the co-ordination and logistics are even more challenging. And that’s when they are getting along.

A relationship breakdown is one of the most traumatic things you’ll ever have to deal with in your life. Life as you know it is tossed completely upside down, and not only do you have to grieve the loss of the relationship, but you probably have to move, open new bank accounts, learn where everything is in a new supermarket, and sometimes even stop seeing some of your friends because your former partner got them in the split. While you’re sorting through 3 years’ worth of bank statements and trying to get your ex to agree that the kids can stay with you until 2.00pm on Christmas Day instead of 1.00pm, it might not feel like there’s much time to get your head around anything else.