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Oct 06, 2016
Television has a lot to answer for when it comes to misconceptions about the law. To be fair, courtroom dramas would not be nearly as exciting if they reflected the truth – 95% of family law matters settle outside the court system.
Now when we say ‘outside the court system’, we mean outside full-blown litigation. If you have read any of our other blog post series, you will know that we strongly advise our clients to seek consent orders from the court to ensure they have the certainty which comes with legally binding orders.
But here are our top three reasons why court should be your last resort in a family law property settlement or parenting matter:
The law says so
Our first reason? Because the law intends for court to be a last resort! At the moment, only 5% of matters end up in court but the court system is still struggling to keep up with demand! In most situations, the Courts only intervene where parties cannot resolve disputes by themselves.
Cost
Court litigation is expensive. Filing applications, collating evidence, drafting affidavits and attending court hearings takes a lot of time for your lawyers. And time is money.
Time:
The simple fact is that court processes take a long time. If you initiate court proceedings, you are locking yourself into a very long legal process.
So, in short: court should be your last resort! Unfortunately, there are always cases where negotiation is simply insufficient. These are the cases which the Court should be adjudicating. For other matters, family law has a number of processes in place expressly for the purpose of facilitating settlement outside of the courts.
If you have a family law matter, concerns about your finances in light of a family law property settlement questions about family law and separation in NSW and want to find out more please do not hesitate to contact us on 9688 6023 or email us at info@franklegal.com.au.
This article is provided to the reader for general information. It is not legal advice. It was written by Andrea Spencer & Emily Graham and edited by James Frank.
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