All parties are required to comply with the Pre-Action Procedures for both financial and parenting matters as set out in the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Family Law) Rules 2021.
In accordance with the Pre-Action Procedures, both parties are required to participate in some form of family law dispute resolution and make a genuine effort to resolve the dispute between them. Compliance with the Pre-Action Procedures can often result in parties reaching an agreement without the need for either of them to issue costly and time-consuming proceedings in the Federal Circuit and Family Court for property adjustment or parenting orders.
Forms of dispute resolution include:
- Mediation through a community-based service such as Relationships Australia or Centacare. Such mediations are conducted without lawyers involved and allow the parties to mediate in a cost effective manner.
- An informal settlement conference between each party and their legal representatives. These conferences are informal in nature and allow the parties to discuss and work through the issues in dispute, with the assistance of their legal representatives.
- Formal mediation with an independent mediator where the legal representatives of each party present their case and the mediator assists the parties to work through and narrow the issues in dispute.
There may be serious consequences imposed by the Court for parties who file proceedings and have not complied with the Pre-Action Procedures, although the Court does recognise a number of circumstances in which compliance may not be possible or appropriate.
For further information as to how we can guide you through the Pre-Action Procedures for either financial or parenting matters, please contact our office on 8227 1970 for a no-obligation telephone discussion.