Information

To make an informed choice you need information. You need to know your rights and obligations and you need to understand the process, practical options and potential pitfalls.

Through face-to-face meetings, and our range of divorce fact sheets, we provide you with up to date information, written in plain Australian, on the key information you need.

Documentation

In order to succeed in divorce proceedings you need to be able to support your claim with the appropriate evidence.

We advise on the evidence that is likely to be required to support your particular claim, and assist in obtaining, indexing and scanning documents into a secure electronic format for security and ease of searching.

Negotiation

In general both parties to a divorce obtain the best outcome where it has been achieved through discussion and negotiation rather than through an order of court. Of course this is not always possible to achieve but, unless there is a history of violence or intimidation, we encourage both parties to enter into a managed series of discussions in order to negotiate a practical and fair settlement. We have considerable experience, in a wide variety of negotiations, and are able to report a significant number of successful outcomes achieved without the cost of legal action.

Once the terms of a settlement have been achieved, we are able to place the terms of the agreement within Consent Orders for filing in court and which become binding once accepted by the court.

Litigation Support

However, a negotiated settlement may be unobtainable, and you may need to instruct a lawyer to apply to court for maintenance, property or parenting orders. If these circumstances apply we can assist you in four ways, we can:

• help you to select the appropriate lawyer, as referred to below;

• enhance and support your claim by presenting comprehensive financial reports on the assets, liabilities and contributions made by you and your former partner;

• assist in obtaining, recording and handling documents relevant to your claim;

• and we can help by providing general emotional and mental support through a difficult ordeal.

Links

A divorce is more than just a court generated document; it often involves a complete change in circumstances, location, lifestyle, income, activities and friends. We recognize that to deal with all of these matters requires a number of different agencies and we have therefore built up a database of competent professionals who can advise in areas of law, financial planning, counseling, banking and investment, real estate and mortgage broking.

All of these agencies are important but, of these, the choice of the right lawyer is critical. At DivorceLink we provide our clients both with contact details of recommended lawyers but also with a series of questions by which they can assess which lawyer best suits them and their case.