Divorce

If either party to a marriage wants to end that marriage, they can do so by making an application for the dissolution of their marriage to the Family Court of Australia or the Federal Magistrates' Service.

The sole ground for obtaining a divorce is that the marriage has "irretrievably broken down". This is a no fault concept where neither party is required to prove that the other is to blame for the marriage breaking down.

The court can grant a divorce on the application of one of the parties to a marriage even if the other partner does not want a divorce.

To prove that a marriage has irretrievably broken down, the court has to be shown that there has has been a separation for a period of at least twelve months before making an application for a divorce, and that it is unlikely that cohabitation will be resumed. The period of separation can be interrupted by periods totalling up to three months of "trying again" or reconciliation, but those periods must be added on to the 12 months before a divorce application can be made.

People can be legally "separated" and yet live under the same roof. This may happen, for example, for financial reasons. The Family Court will have to decide on the particular circumstances as to whether a couple were "separated" despite the fact that they continued to live in the same residence.

If a couple have been married for two years or less, a divorce application can only be made if they have attended an approved marriage guidance counsellor to consider a reconciliation

DIVORCE APPLICATION FEES PAYABLE TO THE COURT

If you have a current health care card or pension concession card, you will normally be exempt from paying the Court fees. The fees payable to the Court are otherwise between $300 to $600.

OUR FEES FOR YOUR DIVORCE APPLICATION

We charge lesser fees for a Divorce Applications where there are no children under 18 years than cases where there are children under 18 years. You may be charged disbursements (out of pocket expenses) for payments such as to process servers to serve the application upon your spouse.  Divorce fees vary between $600 and $2,000. For an accurate estimate it is best to contact us for an appointment, bring your marriage certificate.