Sydney’s North Shore Divorce Lawyers are here to help you

Are you involved in a divorce or separation? Do you feel you need advice on getting the best possible outcome that suits your circumstances? Then you should get the help of a solicitor with plenty of experience in the field, a solicitor who will appreciate what is important to you and respect your wishes.

Our divorce lawyers provide family law legal services to clients from all over Sydney and NSW. A large proportion of our clients come from Pymble, Gordon, Turramurra, Killara, St Ives, Warrawee, Wahroonga, Roseville, Hornsby District, Ryde District, Warringah District and the Northern Beaches.

Disputes relating to divorces and separation come under many names including “family law disputes”, “property settlements”, “parenting arrangements”, “child custody”, “spouse maintenance”, “child support”, “pre-nuptial agreements”, “custody disputes”, “child residence and contact”, “visitation rights”, “divorce litigation”, “relocation disputes”, “consent orders” and sometimes you will hear reference to “collaborative law”.

Regardless of the name, they fall into one of a number of major categories:

The relationship has broken down and needs to be ended and:

• You need advice on your rights when separating; or
• You just need the paperwork done to formalize your divorce; or
• You may have already separated and now want to go to the next steps; or
• You may not have separated yet but want to know about “separation under one roof”; or
• You may have had a marriage of short duration and want to know the special rules.

There has been a marriage or a de facto relationship with children involved and:

• You have an agreement about where they will live; or
• You need to know who has the right to make decisions about them; or
• You need agreements on where you can have them or visit them; or
• You need certainty that they will be looked after and that there is no abuse; or
• You need to know whether the children themselves, or even their grandparents, may have a say.

During the marriage some assets such as property, shares, chattels, cash and superannuation have been acquired and now:

• You want to split the matrimonial assets between you fairly and go your seperate ways; or
• You need to divide assets in a way that will not destroy their value or cause tax problems; or
• You have helped to build the assets even thought you have not worked full time; or
• You want a split that takes into account your special needs such as health issues; or
• You need certainty that your own family’s assets that you will one day inherit will not be taken as part of a property settlement.

The relationship or marriage has ended and you are going your separate ways, but you have a real need for support and the other party has the ability to pay and:

• You need to receive maintenance because you cannot work due to health or age; or
• You require financial support because you are caring for children and so can’t work; or
• You need help to get proper payments through the Child Support Scheme; or
• You need advice about how to get justice when the system is failing you.

You have found a new life partner and you are about to move in together or get married and:

• You need a written agreement that you will not make a claim on one another’s assets; or
• You have children from a previous marriage and want to protect their inheritance; or
• You wish to put in writing that you will both agree to have financially independent lives; or
• You want it in writing that you will not make claims on each other’s estates; or
• You want to reduce the risk of a dispute or litigation over division of assets if and when you separate.

There has been a marriage or relationship and one party or a family member has been threatened or there has been violence or abuse of any form, then:

• You need immediate assistance in bringing it to an end;
• You need to know that it is untrue to say that not much can be done; or
• You need to know that there does not have to be actual violence and that the law will protect victims of non-physical threats and abuse; or
• You require assistance in relation to an Apprehended Violence Order about to be made; or
• You need help when an Apprehended Violence Order has been breached.

In all cases you need a lawyer with extensive experience in these areas of the law. You need a lawyer who will :

• Avoid court action if at all possible, but pursue your interests vigorously if court action cannot be avoided;
• Give you a frank assessment of your chances of success and the costs; and
• Be committed to communicating properly with you and to being accessible to you when you need them.

The North Shore Divorce Lawyers are solicitors who know the law and your legal rights. They have the experience that you need.

Time limits apply in some aspects of family and divorce law, so if you have any doubt about your rights in relation to divorce, parenting, property settlement, maintenance, de facto relationship matters or AVO’s, then you should call us now to get a proper advice on your rights. If you are too slow to seek our help you could be prevented from enforcing your legal rights.