Services > Brisbane Family Lawyers > Property Law

 

There is no universal formula to apply as a property settlement is based on discretionary criteria. In deciding how the assets of a marriage or de facto relationship should be distributed, the Family Law Act sets out a stepped process as follows:

 

Step 1:	What are the net property and financial resources. This includes superannuation entitlements, as well as the value of assets whether held personally or in trusts, partnerships or companies.
Step 2:	What contributions has each party made. This includes not only financial contributions, but also non-financial contributions, and contributions as a parent and homemaker.
Step 3:	Whether any adjustment is required for the future needs of each party, taking into account matters such as care of children, disparity in income earning capacity, health, age and availability of financial resources.
Step 4:	The final consideration is to apply the test of whether any proposed property settlement is fair and equitable in the circumstances.

 

Married couples

 

An application for property settlement must be made within 12 months of obtaining a divorce. Otherwise, it may be necessary to seek the leave of the Court to institute proceedings for property settlement. We can assist you with such an application if need be.

 

De facto couples

 

Persons in a de facto relationship (who separated after 1 March 2009) come within the jurisdiction of the Family Law Act and have the right to make an application for property settlement if they satisfy certain conditions. These conditions include living together, having child or by making a significant contribution to the other party’s property during the relationship;

If you do not qualify under the Family Law Act you may be entitled to make a claim under the Property Law Act in Queensland. We can assist you in determining whether you qualify to bring an application.

 

Finalising a property settlement

 

Unless a settlement is approved by a Court, or a binding Financial Agreement is made pursuant to the Family Law Act, an informal property settlement is not regarded as binding. This means that one of the parties could renege on it and be entitled to apply to the Court for a greater share of the property in the future.

 

If you and your partner reach an agreement about the division of your assets, a family lawyer can prepare an Application for Consent Orders which may be lodged at the Family Court without the need for anyone to appear in Court. Consent orders have the same legal force as a decision made by a Judge in a Courtroom.

 

Our expertise

 

Our specialisation in family Law is complemented by our expertise in commercial and property law, and allows us to provide you with comprehensive advice in the following:-

 

	Negotiating an out of court resolution
	Contested Family Court Litigation
	Review of complex financial structures and identify and retaining experts to value assets such as Employee share options, maintainable earnings and goodwill of family businesses or professional practices and minority interests in family companies
	Identification of Capital Gains Tax Issues and tax effective settlements
	Finding "hidden" assets
	Superannuation splitting

 

For more information, contact us to make an appointment to discuss your situation.

 

Other Family Law Fact Sheets

 

	Arrangements for Children	Read
	Binding Financial Agreements	Read
	Child Support	Read
	Divorce	Read
	Spousal Maintenance	Read
	Surrogacy	Read