Category: FLENA Blogs

Family law mediations are often described as “essential” or “best practice”, but that can oversimplify a complex reality. Mediation can be transformative – or deeply unsafe and unproductive – depending on the timing, the screening, the practitioners involved, and the parties’ capacity to participate. Although many of you will gasp when you read the above statement, we can all agree that there are clear cases where Mediation should not occur under any circumstances.

Access to justice remains a significant challenge for regional and remote Australians. This article examines how distance, cost, workforce shortages and limited services create barriers to legal help, who is most at risk, and how the Future of Regional Legal Services project is gathering real experiences through the National Access to Justice Survey and Regional Voices Project.

In family law, the quality of your relationship with counsel can materially shift outcomes for clients. A well-chosen, well-briefed barrister isn’t just an advocate in court, they are a strategic partner in risk assessment, settlement, and case theory.

Over the coming months, FLENA will travel through regional and remote communities across Australia, connecting with local practitioners, professionals, community organisations and residence. We will listen, learn and better understand the opportunities and challenges facing communities outside our major cities.

Financial abuse is one of the most common yet least recognised forms of family violence. In family law matters, it can profoundly affect bargaining power, access to resources, the fairness of negotiations, and the overall safety of the affected party.

True safety planning in family law is more than drafting an intervention order and hoping for the best. If we work with clients who have lived through family and domestic violence, we are also working with trauma, whether it is named or not.

Superannuation splitting is one of the easiest areas for avoidable mistakes — and one of the fastest ways for Orders to be rejected by a fund trustee. A clean, compliant super split starts with a systematic approach. Before filing any proposed Orders with the Court, here are the critical checks every practitioner should complete.

Trusts are one of the most challenging asset types in family law property matters. Whether it’s a family discretionary trust, a hybrid unit trust, a corporate structure wrapped inside a trust, or an SMSF holding trust assets, practitioners must understand how a trust operates before advising clients or attempting to draft Orders that deal with trust property. This guide breaks down the essentials every lawyer must master.

Family law matters often turn on more than what parties say. They turn on what can be proven. In an era where financial structures are complex, parenting disputes are increasingly nuanced, and digital footprints form part of the evidentiary landscape, forensic evidence has become an essential tool for modern family lawyers.

Family law clients rarely speak in straight lines. Their words are shaped by fear, grief, anger, shame, confusion, or exhaustion — and often all at once. As practitioners, our job is not only to listen to what clients say, but to understand what sits underneath what they say. The ability to spot emotional triggers early is one of the most valuable skills a family lawyer can develop. It informs strategy, improves rapport, reduces conflict, and ultimately leads to better outcomes for clients and matters alike.