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Divorce Lawyers Melbourne

You can only apply for divorce under Australian Law after you have been separated for a period of at least one year. In 1976, the Family Law Act established a "no-fault divorce" system in Australia. This means that only ground required for divorce is that the marriage has broken down irretrievably- who is to blame is irrelevant. If there are children aged under 18 years old, the Court can only grant a Divorce if it is satisfied that proper arrangements have been made for the welfare of those children.

If both parties agree, you may apply for a Joint Application for Divorce.  However, if the other party does not "agree" to a Divorce, this does not present a problem as you can still apply for Divorce on your own- but it will be necessary to serve the Divorce Application on the other Spouse prior to the Divorce Hearing.  Even if the other party objects to the Divorce, the Court will grant the Divorce as long as there is evidence of a one year separation and proper arrangements having been made for the welfare of the children. Subject to proof of separation, it is sometimes possible to obtain a Divorce if there has been a separation under the one roof.

If you only wish to settle property and financial issues and/or child arrangements, it is not obligatory to apply for a Divorce. You do not have to wait for a year before dealing with property and child issues as a Divorce is a separate independent Court Case.

A Divorce Order, once granted at the Divorce Hearing, does not become final until one month and one day after the Divorce Hearing and you should not finalise any arrangements to remarry until the Court has fixed the date on which the Divorce is to become final.

An Australian Court may have Jurisdiction to grant a Divorce even if the parties no longer live in Australia.  Please refer to our International Family Law section of this website for further information.

For further Specialist advice, call Melbourne Family Lawyers today for an appointment on +613 9670 9677.

Established in Melbourne since 1985.

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