Family Law

Relationship breakdown and separation can be a very difficult time, and deciding how to make good arrangements for your children, or how best to divide your finances and assets for a new future are extremely important.

For some families, the Family Court is the best place to sort out their issues, but for many others it is not. DIY Family Law will advise you about available options and what might be the best way FOR YOU to proceed with your dispute. Every case is different and there is more than one way to proceed.

DIY Family Law offers:
• Family Law Consultancy for people representing themselves
• Collaborative family law practice
• Family Mediation (described more fully at the "family dispute resolution" page of this website)
• Downloads

All Family Law services are charged at the Family Law “Scale rate” of fees. Please inquire about the hourly rate when you first make contact.

Family Law Consultancy for people representing themselves

Currently, there are approximately 50% - 60% of people involved in Family Court proceedings in Australia not represented by lawyers.

From time to time many of those people will need legal assistance to help get through "the maze", no matter how well they are coping with the system. Being involved in a case at the Family Court, for most people, is a bit like travelling to a country where you only speak a bit of their language: you’re generally doing pretty well but you’re not sure about the customs of the place, or whether you’re using the right words to make yourself understood, or exactly what is happening around you all of the time!

DIY Family Law provides legal assistance and advice as you need it to allow yourself to best manage your own case in the Family Court or outside of the Court system. This may be in the form of:

sensible and easy to understand legal assistance, information and advice;
help with where YOU are in the process and your options for the next step;
realistic advice on “the way forward”. This may include: negotiation (eg. letters, phone calls, meetings); referral to counselling (eg personal or financial); starting or continuing proceedings in the Family Court, or a combination of the above.
assistance with drafting letters or assisting with other ways of opening up the discussion with your former partner;
assistance with drafting your own court documents if you are involved in the Family Court process (OR DIY Family Law can prepare documents on your behalf depending on what you choose);
any other way necessary to assist.

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Collaborative Family Law practice

Collaborative practice offers a fresh approach to resolving the issues that arise out of a relationship breakdown. It is a dispute resolution process designed to assist you to stay in control of your own decisions and out of court.

You and your former partner and each of your lawyers make a commitment to negotiate an agreement using a cooperative problem solving approach. Collaborative practice is suitable for resolving both financial and parenting issues, as it focuses on the needs of both of you and your children.

One fundamental aspect of the collaborative process is that both you and your former partner agree not to go to court or threaten to go to court. If either of you do so, this ends the collaborative process and you each need to find another lawyer for the court work.

Collaborative family law has been practised in the USA and Canada since the early 1990’s and more recently in Europe and Australia. It is now recognised as a successful alternative dispute resolution pathway.

Catherine Doran, Principal of DIY Family Law, is a member of “Collaborative Professionals (WA) www.collaborativeprofessionalswa.com.au and the “International Academy of Collaborative Professionals” www.collaborativepractice.com .

Two questions that are commonly asked:

• What is collaborative practice?

• Is collaborative practice for me?

What is Collaborative Practice?

Collaborative Law is a way of reaching settlement with your former partner and involves:

specially trained lawyers and both you and your former partner agreeing to work together to resolve the dispute openly, honestly, and without the threat or the use of the Courts.
a number of joint meetings between you both and each of your lawyers to discuss what needs to be done to clarify things (eg; deciding on the value of assets, needs of your children, details of health and other insurances etc) so that you can then move on to making good decisions about whatever it is that is in dispute;

The process will usually result in agreements or orders that are made by consent between you both.

Is collaborative law for me?

Collaborative law may be of interest to you if the following considerations are important to you:

you want a dignified, non-aggressive resolution of the issues;
you have children and wish to keep their needs and interests at the front of your mind;
you don’t want to incur the costs and animosity generated by Court litigation;
you don’t want to hand over the decision-making about your children or about restructuring your financial arrangement to your lawyer or to a judge;
you want your dispute and the terms of any subsequent settlement agreement to be confidential; or
you need the assistance of a lawyer to help you negotiate in face-to- face meetings.

Collaborative law will not be the right option for you if:

your main objective is to “seek revenge” or to “have your day in Court”;
you would rather someone else made the decision for you;
you are hoping to avoid giving full financial disclosure.