Category: Legal

Legal

10 Common Myths About Separation And Divorce

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10 Common Myths About Separation And Divorce

Given that a divorce is something that most people will never experience, or if they do, it will be once, it is understandable that knowledge of family law relating to separation and divorce will be extremely limited. This is why the most sensible action for anyone going through a divorce is to seek the services of an experienced family lawyer.

It is also a reason why there are so many myths in circulation concerning divorce. To be fair, it may not just be due to ignorance of divorce law, as often divorce cases are depicted on TV and in movies as having more legal wrangling than most ever are in reality. So, to clear up some of the confusion, here are 10 myths relating to divorce and separation.

Assets Are Always Divided 50/50: The division of assets within a property settlement must be fair but that does mean that everything is given a value, and each party receives half. It should be based on fairness and future needs, including the care of any children.

Divorces Are Always Settled In Court: Whilst a court will grant the final divorce via consent orders, if the couple has agreed to all financial matters and those relating to their children, then the case is not heard in a courtroom.

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Legal

Why Relocating Your Children After Divorce Is Not Always Straightforward

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Why Relocating Your Children After Divorce Is Not Always Straightforward

When the parents of children divorce, or separate when in a de facto relationship, there are many aspects of the children’s lives that need to be agreed upon. This will often be done with the support and representation of expert family lawyers from www.robertsonhayles.com.au, and ultimately any agreement will be sanctioned by the family court.

If no agreement can be found however, the court, having heard from both parties, will decide the way forward. It does so via a family order which will normally relate to which parent they will live with, what the other parent’s visitation arrangements are, and assuming the court has no information which precludes it, it will rule that joint parental responsibility applies.

In any decision, the court will always have as its most important priority the welfare and best interests of the children. This applies regardless of whether or not the two parents are on speaking terms, or generally amicable to each other. In other words, the court is not concerned with how much either parent thinks the other should not have responsibility or visitation for example.

The court will also most likely be required when one of the parents, usually the one with whom the children live, wishes to relocate to another town, city, or state. Now, in some cases, they might just be doing this to spite the other parent, but this is rare.

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Legal

Suspended Sentences And What They Mean For The Offender

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Suspended Sentences And What They Mean For The Offender

Whenever someone has been convicted of a crime, one of the primary questions they will have for their criminal lawyer at Perth Criminal Lawyers, is what punishment they are likely to receive. Obviously, this will depend on a number of factors such as the severity of the crime and their previous criminal record if they have one.

The most commonly known penalties are fines, community orders, and imprisonment, but there are others, and these fall under the category of suspended sentences.

The correct term for them is ‘Suspended Imprisonment Order’, and they basically mean that the offender has been given an imprisonment sentence for their crime, but do not actually have to go to prison. It should be noted that in many Australian states, suspended sentences are not used, however, in Western Australia, they do still exist.

The law is clear when, and when not, it might be appropriate for a suspended sentence to be issued. Should the crime have occurred whilst the offender was already serving a prison sentence, or where they were on parole or other early release order, a suspended sentence cannot be issued.

If the offence would normally mean a prison sentence of fewer than 5 years, or where it is deemed that imprisoning the offender would not be appropriate, a suspended sentence can be considered.

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