Care of Children.

A large part of the work I do is assisting clients to make arrangements for their children's care after separation, or when children cannot live with either of their parents for some reason.

The relevant legislation is the Care of Children Act 2004, which provides for parents to come to agreements about the day-to-day care of their children. One parent may have sole day-to-day care of the children, or the parents may share the care of the children ("shared care"). If one parent has sole care of the children, the other parent may have contact with the children. The concepts of day-to-day care and contact used to be called custody, access or visitation.

The Care of Children Act also governs the concept of guardianship. 

Ideally, you and your children's other parent will be able to agree on arrangements for your children's care. Many parents are able to do this, but for many others, it is impossible. This could be because you have concerns about your children's safety in the care of their other parent, or because the other parent is making unreasonable or unrealistic demands. Sometimes children express views about spending time with their other parent that you just can't ignore.

The first step, unless your situation is urgent, is to attempt to resolve the matter with your children's other parent outside of Court. There are many ways this can be done - arrange to meet with the other parent and have a discussion, get a lawyer to write to the other parent, or attend mediation or dispute resolution.

Whatever avenue you think you might like to take, you should obtain legal advice first. Unless you know your rights, understand the law and are armed with strategies and options for the care of your children, it is very likely that you will come out worse off from any attempt to negotiate or mediate with your children's other parent.

Getting started

If you are on a low income, you may be eligible for free legal advice under the Family Legal Advice Service. 
For those not eligible for government funding, I am able to provide a one-off consultation for a fixed fee of $299.00 incl GST.

For urgent matters where a child's safety is at risk and/or where there has been family violence, you are always going to get a better outcome from the Court process after seeking legal advice. I can help you to make an application to the Family Court to ensure the immediate safety of your children. If you are on a low income, you may be eligible to apply for legal aid.