On 1 September 2021 the Family Court of Australia merged with the Federal Circuit Court of Australia. The new Court referred to as the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia has a primary aim to finalise 90% of property or parenting matters by way of providing a final judgment and decision within 12 months of filing an Initiating Application.
For years, the Family and Federal Circuit Court’s have been overworked, understaffed, and plagued by constant delays and adjournments of matters. The new Court aims to provide a solution with quicker and more cost-effective resolutions to family law matters that require the Court’s intervention. On a practical level, the merger now means there is one Court, one jurisdiction, and one set of Court forms with updated processes to accelerate matters within the system. On a practical level, the new Court will expedite the process by ensuring a first Court date within 6 to 8 weeks of filing an Initiating Application, with matters then Ordered to attend mediation within 6-months and, if unsuccessful at mediation, will proceed to a trial and receive judgment in under 12 months. Now is therefore a better time than any to commence Court proceedings under the new Court system. If you are considering taking this next step, please contact the team at James Noble Law for a FREE, no-obligation 20-minute consultation to discuss your particular situation with Brisbane family lawyers. Find Brisbane family lawyers on Google Maps near you. You may like to know more information about the
For more information, please visit the main article source: Federal Circuit Court
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What Does Structural Reform of the Federal Court Mean To You?
On 30 May 2018, the Government proposed to establish the new Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (FCFCA), amalgamating the two courts together under a new regime. In addition to this proposed structure, a new Family Law Appeal Division will be created to hear appeals from the FCFCA regarding family law matters. The implementation of the new structure commenced operation on 1 January 2019. There will now be a single point of entry for family law matters, being through the FCFCA. The current court structure has been debilitated with overlapping jurisdictional matters, backlogs of case hearings, and significant inefficiencies through delays, costs, and overall experiences by parties to the litigation. The proposed reform will address these issues by establishing a new streamlined court system, enabling Australian families to have their matters dealt with in a timely manner and receive more consistent resolutions. The structure of the FCFCA is divided into two divisions. The first will comprise existing judges of the Family court, whilst the second will comprise existing judges of the Federal Circuit Court. Division 1 will deal exclusively with family law matters. Division 2 will deal with both family law matters and federal law matters. No further judge appointments will occur in Division 1, meaning when those judges who are currently appointed in Division 1 retire, this division will cease to exist. In regard to federal law matters, the process of appeal will not be affected by the new FCFCA structure. Practical Effects of Merge The new FCFCA will create a single point of entry into the court system for family law matters. The principle of prioritizing urgent and high-risk cases will continue to be adhered to, with all other cases being allocated to a relevant judge and division at the earliest possible date. To assists in making the new structure efficient, the FCFCA will operate under the leadership of the Chief Justice Australia and the Deputy Chief Justice. This proposed formula ensures allocation of matters will be handled via the common case management process. By adopting this process, parties to a dispute can be assured the matter is being dealt with consistently. Furthermore, litigants will have an increased experience with the court system and parties will be able to grasp the cost implications of lodging a family law initiating an application. The change to appeals under the FCFCA will remove the predominant part of the appellate jurisdiction of the Family Court. The aim of this proposal will be to divert judicial resources from the appeal section to focus on alleviating the backlog of first instance family law matters. As a result, party dispute waiting times will be standardised with the court being able to hear more cases on average per year. Although the FCFCA will retain jurisdiction to hear appeals from State/Territory court summary jurisdiction, the creation of the new appellate jurisdiction will extend to both division 1 and 2 of the FCFCA. The current rights to appeal provided for under the Family Law Act 1975 (Cth) will not be affected. Statistics Supporting Reform In the last five years, the family law cases before the Family Court of Australia and the Federal Circuit Court have grown from 17,000 to 21,000. In addition to this increase, the average time of cases pending final orders has grown to over 12 months. In regard to cases awaiting trial, the median time spans between 10.8 – 15.2 months for the FCC and 11.5 – 17 months for the Family Court of Australia. In regard to appeals, only 250 have been filed each year since 2013. Although appeals can usually be heard by a single judge, over 75% of appeals to the Family Court are heard by the Full Bench of three judges. In comparison, 88% of appeals in the FCC are heard by a single judge. The current structure of the Family Court provides families are estimated to have cost more than four times the amount of average FCC matters, litigants are required to appear in court 45% more than litigants in the FCC, and days allocated for the trial are double in the Family Court than in the FCC. In terms of unnecessary jurisdiction transfers, the average waiting time to have a case transferred between the courts is 11.1 months in the FCC and 4.6 months in the Family Court. Consequently, the 1,200 families attempting to transfer matters in 2016-17 had to essentially restart their proceedings using the alternate courts’ practice. Watch this space The proposed structural changes aim to improve case efficiency drastically, allowing time to hear and resolve an additional 8000 cases per year. This conclusion is broken down into a potential 3,500 cases arising from consolidating a single court entity with one point of entry, 3,000 cases from structured common case management, and 1,500 cases arising from shifting judicial resources from appeals to first instance matters. Although the finalization of 8,000 cases may be an optimistic conclusion by the Government, these changes will hopefully reduce the growing backlog of cases under the current regime and reduce average waiting times. To discuss your situation and the options that are available to you, contact the team at James Noble Law today for expert advice from experienced Brisbane solicitors for a FREE 20-minute consultation. We have Qualified and Experienced Family Lawyers Brisbane at James Noble Law. Find Brisbane family lawyers on Google Maps near you now. You may like to know more information about the
Britney Spears is making international headlines yet again, but this time there’s no new album being released or a shot gun Las Vegas wedding.
Ms Spears actively continues to strongly oppose the conservatorship which granted her Father control over her finances, financial and personal decisions that has been in place since 2008. Ms Spears primary objection is that the conservatorship is no longer warranted and that it has become oppressive and used as a method of control against her. The Court litigation in the US continues with the world watching. In Australia, this process can be invoked in the event a person lacks the legal and mental capacity to make personal, financial or health decisions for themselves. Each State and Territory has a different process to follow. In Queensland, this would involve a person (usually a family member, friend, colleague, Doctor or other medical professionals) requesting an independent capacity assessment from the Queensland Civil & Administrative Tribunal. So, what is Capacity involves:
If you are concerned someone you love may have capacity issues, seek independent legal advice at the earliest available opportunity. If you need any help, please contact the team at James Noble Law for a FREE 20-minute consultation today to schedule an appointment with one of our Qualified and experienced Family lawyers Brisbane. Find Brisbane family lawyers on Google Maps near you. You may also like to know more information about the For more information, please visit the main article source: Capacity Assessment For a conciliation conference, you must exchange information with each other and provide information to the Court before the conference. So that you and your former partner make the best possible use of the conference.
In a case about financial issues, each party must have exchanged copies of relevant financial documents with the other parties at least two days before the Case Assessment Conference. If the following documents were not exchanged prior to that conference, you must ensure they are exchanged before the Conciliation Conference:
This article provides general information about and suggests ways to prepare for, a Conciliation Conference in the Family Court. Note: Conciliation Conferences attract a fee. For more information visit the fees section www.familycourt.gov.au What must I do before the Conciliation Conference? A Conciliation Conference is conducted by a registrar (court lawyer). At the conference, the registrar will look at the case from both sides and help you explore options for settling your case without any further legal action. A registrar cannot give legal advice, however, they can talk with you about the legal principles that are applied when deciding cases. The settlement negotiations during the conference may be privileged. This means that what is said cannot be used in court later. There are some exceptions to this privilege. For example, court staff is required by law to report a suspicion or risk of child abuse and violence or threats of violence to the relevant child welfare authority. The conference will usually last at least one and a half hours but may be listed for a longer time in appropriate cases. What can I expect at the conference? The Court will usually give you instructions about what you must do before the Conciliation Conference at the Case Assessment Conference. These instructions include that, within 28 days after the conference, each party must, as far as practicable, exchange documents relevant to the financial issues as the registrar orders. The documents required may include any documents which should have been exchanged prior to the Case Assessment Conference but have not yet been exchanged (see above) and any other documents required containing evidence about:
You must: File and serve a Financial Questionnaire within 21 days after the Case Assessment Conference. Prepare with the other party and file a Balance Sheet as required – in summary:
Note – It is important that you make full and frank disclosure of all facts and documents relevant to your application. Failure to do so can delay a settlement, result in increased costs, or order for you to pay the other party’s costs. It may also lead to the Court making a greater order for a property settlement in favor of the other party. You should also read Rule 13.04 of the Family Law Rules 2004 and the Family Court’s brochure Duty of Disclosure. If you need any help please contact the Brisbane Family Lawyers team today for a FREE, no-obligation 20-minute consultation. We have Qualified and Experienced Family Lawyers Brisbane at James Noble Law. Find Brisbane family law lawyers on Google Maps Near you now. You may like to know more information about the For more information, please visit the main article source: Conciliation Conference A Consent Order is a quickest and most cost-effective way to formalise an amicable property settlement agreement.
If you and your former partner are able to reach an agreement as to how the property of the relationship is to be divided and, if that agreement is just and equitable, Consent Orders may be entered into. Consent Orders involve the filing of 2 separate documents, namely an Application for Consent Order (containing background information, the value of assets and liabilities, information regarding contributions, and the split of assets and liabilities) as well as Minutes of Consent (which sets out the legal language of the property settlement agreement including transfer clauses). Consent Order may be filed in the Family Court of Australia or the local State Magistrates Court exercising Family Law Jurisdiction. A Registrar will review the Consent Orders and if the agreement between the parties is fair, the Orders will issue with the Court seal. This is when the agreement becomes legally binding. also alleviate the need to pay stamp duty on the transfer of real property from joint names to one party’s name, which can be quite a significant cost saving in itself. If you are considering entering into a Consent Order please contact the team at James Noble Law for more information. Learn more about Consent Orders… James Noble Law is experienced by advocates in the Federal Circuit Court and Family Courts as well as the state Courts in Brisbane for a range of matters. We offer professional Brisbane town agency rates that are fixed so you know how much you will pay before you even make contact with us. See the schedule below for details.
James Noble has had 40 years of experience in the Courts and can take care of the most complex matters. Just provide your instructions and documents and he will take care of it for you. Charles Noble and our other lawyers attend Court on regular basis (sometimes daily). We have a network of lawyers who are experts in their field who can help with all your town agency needs. At James Noble Law we offer repeat principals our special rates. All you need to do is instruct our firm more than three times and you are then eligible for the reduced rates. At James Noble Law we value our loyal principals and are happy to return the favour to you. The schedule below outlines our rates for firms that use our Town Agency Services Regularly. A Business Approach To Town Agency ServicesAll of our lawyers are admitted to practice in the State and Federal Courts, from the magistrates courts Queensland through to the Supreme and even High Court of Australia. James Noble Law can take on Brisbane family law matters as agents and offer an advanced process toward achieving a positive resolution for all clients. Get in touch to see how we can help with your Brisbane town agency matter. If you are not already a James Noble Law Brisbane Town Agency client, we look forward to showing you how Court work can be done to the highest quality without the need for you to charge your clients the fees and travel costs they would otherwise incur should you travel away from your local area to represent them. Aligned For Excellence.
James Noble Law Brisbane Town Agency Fees Per Day One off engagement and up to third use fees Half-Day (less than four hours)Full Day (more than four hours) Accredited Specialist or Lawyer with at least five years Court experience in your required field.$1,800 + GST$2,600 + GST Experienced Lawyer with less than five years Court experience in your required field$1,500 + GST$2,200 + GST Three uses and beyond Half-Day (less than four hours)Full Day (more than four hours) Accredited Specialist or Lawyer with at least five years Court experience in your required field.$1,700 + GST$2,500 + GST Experienced Lawyer with less than five years Court experience in your required field $1,400 + GST$2,100 + GST Article Source: Federal Circuit Court Of Australia Preparing For A Conciliation Conference?
For a conciliation conference, you must exchange information with each other and provide information to the Court before the conference. So that you and your former partner make the best possible use of the conference. In a case about financial issues, each party must have exchanged copies of relevant financial documents with the other parties at least two days before the Case Assessment Conference. If the following documents were not exchanged prior to that conference, you must ensure they are exchanged before the Conciliation Conference:
This article provides general information about and suggests ways to prepare for, a Conciliation Conference in the Family Court. Note: Conciliation Conferences attract a fee. For more information visit the fees section www.familycourt.gov.au What must I do before the Conciliation Conference? A Conciliation Conference is conducted by a registrar (court lawyer). At the conference, the registrar will look at the case from both sides and help you explore options for settling your case without any further legal action. A registrar cannot give legal advice, however, they can talk with you about the legal principles that are applied when deciding cases. The settlement negotiations during the conference may be privileged. This means that what is said cannot be used in court later. There are some exceptions to this privilege. For example, court staff is required by law to report a suspicion or risk of child abuse and violence or threats of violence to the relevant child welfare authority. The conference will usually last at least one and a half hours but may be listed for a longer time in appropriate cases. What can I expect at the conference? The Court will usually give you instructions about what you must do before the Conciliation Conference at the Case Assessment Conference. These instructions include that, within 28 days after the conference, each party must, as far as practicable, exchange documents relevant to the financial issues as the registrar orders. The documents required may include any documents which should have been exchanged prior to the Case Assessment Conference but have not yet been exchanged (see above) and any other documents required containing evidence about:
You must: File and serve a Financial Questionnaire within 21 days after the Case Assessment Conference. Prepare with the other party and file a Balance Sheet as required – in summary:
Note – It is important that you make full and frank disclosure of all facts and documents relevant to your application. Failure to do so can delay a settlement, result in increased costs, or order for you to pay the other party’s costs. It may also lead to the Court making a greater order for a property settlement in favor of the other party. You should also read Rule 13.04 of the Family Law Rules 2004 and the Family Court’s brochure Duty of Disclosure. To assist with navigating this scenario for your matter, please choose James Noble Law, Best Brisbane Family Lawyer. Article Source: Conciliation Conference |
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