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Helping families facilitate outcomes in the best interests of the child – that’s the heart of our practice

Helping families facilitate outcomes in the best interests of the child

Parenting Law

What is this about?

With extensive experience, we understand the importance of giving you options to achieve your parenting goals in a timely manner, while putting your children’s best interests first.

How We Can Help

Alternatively, we can guide you through Family Dispute Resolution (mediation) to negotiate an agreed outcome, without having to go to court. In the event agreements cannot be reached, our experienced litigators will advocate for you and your children in court. Our Parenting Coordination service provides ongoing support with the implementation of complex court orders.

First Steps

If you are seeking early advice about your options or looking to
begin a particular process, book a free initial consultation by calling us or filling in our online form.

We’re happy to arrange whichever time and means (in person,
telephone, or online) suits you best for this consultation.

If you are seeking early advice about your options or looking to begin a particular process, book a free initial consultation by calling us or filling in our online form.

We’re happy to arrange whichever time and means (in person, telephone, or online) suits you best for this consultation.

Mathews Family Law Services

Children and Parenting

Best Interests of the Child’ considerations
Same sex parenting
Parental responsibility
Living and spend time arrangements
Relocation
International parenting issues
Parenting Plans
Co-parenting
Varying parenting court orders
Rights of grandparents and others

What is this about?

If you are seeking early advice about your options or looking to begin a particular process, book a free initial consultation by calling us or filling in our online form.
We’re happy to arrange whichever time and means (in person, telephone, or online) suits you best for this consultation.

First Steps

Parenting law covers a diverse and often sensitive range of topics, including; parental responsibility, child’s best interests, same sex parenting, parenting plans, relocation and international parenting issues.
With over 60 years’ combined experience, we understand the importance of giving you options to achieve your parenting goals in a timely manner, while putting your children's best interests first.

How We Can Help

Whatever your family circumstances, Mathews Family Law advise and prepare you in all areas of parent and child-related family law issues. We’ll help you reach agreement about parenting arrangements and formalise these with a parenting plan or consent court orders (a written agreement approved by a court).
Alternatively, we can guide you through Family Dispute Resolution (mediation) to negotiate an agreed outcome, without having to go to court. In the event agreements cannot be reached, our experienced litigators will advocate for you and your children in court. Our Parenting Coordination service provides ongoing support with the implementation of complex court orders.

Best Interests of the Child’ considerations
Same sex parenting
Parental responsibility
Living and spend time
arrangements
Relocation
International parenting issues
Parenting Plans
Co-parenting
Varying parenting court orders
Rights of grandparents and others

Mathews
Family Law
Services

With over 60 years’ combined
experience, we understand the
importance of giving you options
to achieve your parenting goals in
a timely manner, while putting your
children's best interests first.

If you are seeking early advice about your options or looking to begin a particular process, book a free initial consultation by calling us or filling in our online form.

Children and Parenting

Alternatively, we can guide you through Family Dispute Resolution (mediation) to negotiate an agreed outcome, without having to go to court. In the event agreements cannot be reached, our experienced litigators will advocate for you and your children in court. Our Parenting Coordination service provides ongoing support with the implementation of complex court orders.

We’re happy to arrange whichever time and means (in person, telephone, or online) suits you best for this consultation.

Best Interests of the Child’ considerations
Same sex parenting
Parental responsibility
Living and spend time arrangements
arrangements
Relocation
International parenting issues
Parenting Plans
Co-parenting
Varying parenting court orders
Rights of grandparents and others

Best Interests of Child

Parental Responsibility and
Shared Time

Parenting Arrangements After Divorce

Court Orders

Essentials Of A Good Parenting Plan

No two are families alike, especially no two divorcing families. So parenting plans will differ, depending on the size of the family, religious affiliation, professional status of parents, income, educational needs and location, just to name a few. The first step to creating the plan is simply sitting down together and talking. If parents were unable to open the lines of communication during marriage, this might be an even harder task now. But both sides must remember that the children’s needs and best interests are the priority and they come first in the parenting plan. With that in mind, below are some essential issues that every plan should have, along with some extra ideas that families might want to consider for their plan.

A schedule for the children

This is a schedule for the children for school vacations, national and religious holidays and day-to-day living. In the ideal, it looks towards the future, so schedules can be created on a yearly basis, with holidays and visitation days switching each year (ie Mom has the children for Christmas in odd years and Dad has them for summer holidays in even years).

Decision Making

A good plan should determine the authority and responsibilities of each parent. The parenting plan should determine who makes which decisions. Some parents decide that when the children are with a parent, that parent makes day to day decisions. For young children, this might include what they eat, how often they bathe, how homework is done and when they go to sleep. For older children decision-making will involve issues of computer and cell phone use, dating, curfews, car use and more.

Best Interests of Child

Parental Responsibility and
Shared Time

Parenting Arrangements After Divorce

Court Orders

Intervention Orders

www.interventionordersmelbourne.com.au

A Family Violence Intervention Order grants the affected family member experiencing family violence immediate short-term and long-term protection.

We explain what this means and what your options and rights.

Online Divorce Application

www.divorce-online.com.au

For a simple fast and cost effective divorce with minimal fuss we offer a fixed fee standard online divorce application. The fee includes an application for divorce, court filing fees and disbursements.

Unbundled Legal & Mediation

Unbundling breaks up the family lawyer’s role into a number of agreed limited legal services. This empowers the client to select only those legal services that they require and can limit the lawyer’s involvement to a single issue, court or mediation process including:

Advice only
Research only
Drafting letters or court documents
Reviewing client prepared letters and court documents
Negotiation coaching in preparation for mediation or settlement meeting
Negotiating on behalf of the client
Attendance at mediation or court appearance on behalf of the client
Drafting settlement agreements
Providing independent legal advice for financial agreements
This is supported by a written ‘unbundled limited scope engagement /
agreement’ (costs agreement) and fixed fees by agreement.

Transparent Fee Structure

Family law advice is expensive. To assist you, Mathews Family Law offers a free initial telephone consultation:

Fixed Fee Services

Intervention Order	$1,950 + GST
Online Application for Divorce	$990 + GST (+disbursements)
Family Dispute Resolution and Property Mediation
Intake Meeting (per hour)	$500 + GST
Joint Session (up to 3.5 hours)	$1,750 + GST
Unbundled Legal and Mediation Service (per hour)	$385 + GST

Your initial conference with us is important. It warrants the attention of an accredited family law specialist who will apply their knowledge of the law to the special circumstances of your matter. For this reason we do not offer a ‘free half hour’ service