What Family Law Says About A Parent Changing A Child’s Name After Separation Or Divorce

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March 1, 2023

One of the enquiries that many family lawyers get from their clients who have children and who have separated or divorced, concerns the rights and legalities of changing a child’s name. Most usually that will be to change their surname rather than their first name, although that does get raised occasionally.

Almost without exception enquiries to family lawyers about changing a child’s surname will come from the child’s mother, who, having changed her surname when she got married, wishes to either revert to her maiden name or it could be she is going to remarry and change her surname to that of her new spouse. It follows that the child’s mother may want her child’s surname to match hers for practical and emotional reasons.

Family Law And Shared Parental Responsibility

One of the core principles enshrined in current family law, and in particular the 1975 Family Law Act, is that of shared parental responsibility. It means that, even if a child lives primarily with one of their parents, their absent parent has as much say in their child’s well-being as the resident parent. As such, a child’s mother cannot make important decisions about the child, including what surname they use, independently and without discussion with the child’s father.

The Legal Implications Of Drug Abuse

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November 14, 2022
The Legal Implications Of Drug Abuse

Getting involved with drugs at any level can lead to negative consequences, and that applies whether you have already entered or intend to enter drug rehab, or have no intention to seek help for your addiction. Worse, if you are someone whose relationship with drugs is not as a drug user, but instead supplying and selling drugs to others, then you must be aware that the penalties you could face if caught and convicted are extreme.

One thing that many who are convicted of a drug offence often say is that they had no idea how severe the penalties could be. You might find that hard to believe, but it is a sad fact, especially for those who have a drugs addiction, that their thoughts about the future are predominantly focused on where they are going get their next ‘fix’, rather than what might happen if they get caught buying or using the drugs that they hoped would give them that fix.

The fact is being caught, charged, and convicted with a drug offence has multiple implications for your life, including your relationships, your family, your employment, your future life, and most stark of all, for your liberty, should the punishment you are given be one of imprisonment. Let us look at all of these legal implications in some more detail.

10 Ideas To Help Lawyers Attract New Online Clients

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June 1, 2022
10 Ideas To Help Lawyers Attract New Online Clients

For a lawyer’s business to remain viable it must have the means to attract new clients, and one of the most effective is digital marketing from professional digital agency such as Slinky Digital. Digital marketing offers many online channels and opportunities for businesses of all kinds, including law firms, to target audiences, encourage them to their website, and then convert them from interested prospects into paying clients.

However, none of this will occur if the digital marketing campaign which is created, is poor. So, to ensure that any lawyer reading this has multiple ways they can enhance a digital campaign and in turn, attract a flood of new clients, here are ten tips that are proven to work.

Create Problem Solving Videos: Creating videos and publishing them to your YouTube channel and other video websites is an excellent way to boost your SEO and generate traffic as well as boost your credibility and authority.

Actively Seek Client Reviews: Having positive reviews from past and existing clients on your website and sites like Trustpilot is a sure-fire way to reassure prospects that they can rely on your expertise and professionalism.

What Relocation Orders Mean For The Children Of Divorced Parents

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April 6, 2021
What-Relocation-Orders-Mean-For-The-Children-Of-Divorced-Parents

Whenever a couple divorces and there are children in that marriage, in most cases both parents will be awarded joint parental responsibility unless one parent and their family lawyer can show the family court that sole responsibility should be ordered.

In truth, it is rare for sole parental responsibility to be given, except where one of the parents is absent or not capable of having such responsibility, for example, if they are a serious drug user.

For most parents and children, it is joint parental responsibility which will apply and that will cover who the children live with, visitation, and also the obligation for both parents to discuss and agree on any and all of the major decisions that relate to a child’s upbringing and welfare.

One major problem with that scenario is when the parent with whom a child lives decides that they wish to relocate. When we say relocate that is not talking about a simple house move to another part of the city, but instead referring to a move to a completely different city or state.

What Are Parenting Orders?

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September 22, 2020
Parenting Orders

Whenever a couple spilt, and there are children involved, even if the breakup is somewhat acrimonious, the welfare of those children must be paramount. As your divorce lawyer at familylawassist.com.au will tell you, a court can make a parenting order if the parents cannot agree, but there are ways to make parenting arrangements which do not always involve going to court.

The latter applies when there is a degree of civility between the parents, and they are able to agree to parent arrangements amicably. In this scenario, they simply agree to a parenting plan which they both commit to sticking to. Here there is no need to involve the court. but for this reason, this type of parenting plan is not legally enforceable.

The other way an agreement can be reached, and have greater legal status, is to apply to the court for a consent order. Here the agreement is reached between the two parents with regards to the children, but they give it legal status by applying to the court to formalise it.

In these circumstances, the court will not simply rubber-stamp it, even though an agreement has been reached. The court will also ensure that the agreement is appropriate, that the interests of the children are being met, and that the agreement is fair to both parties.

What Can Happen If I Breach My Employment Contract?

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April 19, 2020
Breach My Employment Contract

Employment contracts are legally binding agreements between an employer and an employee, often created with the help of a qualified lawyer. Since employment contracts are legally binding, there can be serious consequences if they are breached.

However, many people don’t realise how serious these consequences can be. In the rest of this article, we’ve covered everything you need to know about what could happen if you breach your employment contract. If you believe you may have broken your agreement, we’d highly recommend speaking with a lawyer as soon as possible to minimise the damage.

One thing that’s worth quickly noting here is that contracts can be breached by employees and employers alike, so keep that in mind.

What Are the Penalties for Employees Breaching a Contract?

Under Australian law, employment contracts are legally binding documents, and there can be significant penalties if you break them. Two of the most common penalties include:

  • Being sued for damages can be significant. In one high-profile case in 2009, a former employee was taken to court and ordered to pay over $500,000 in damages to an Australian financial broking company.
  • Being prevented from working with a competitor. Many contracts have something that’s called a “restraint of trade provision”, which essentially prevents an employee or former employee from working with a competitor for a specified amount of time.

Unfortunately, complex employment contracts are often written well and indeed in favour of the employer. It’s essential to work through your contract with a lawyers before you sign it. Doing so will help ensure you suffer minimal penalties if you do have to break the contract.

Things To Consider When Selling Your Business

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October 3, 2019
Selling Your Business

If you’re thinking about selling your business then there are a lot of things to consider. For one, you need to make sure that you’re offering a fair price which both maximizes your profit and gives you a good chance of finding a buyer.

You also need to make sure that you’re covering all your bases in a legal sense. There are plenty of things to consider, and it’s always a good idea to engage the services of an experienced commercial lawyer and when dealing with money, it is a good idea to contact your financial planner at www.andep.com.au to make sure you’re maximising your money.

In order to help you get your mind working, I’ve put together a quick list of things that you absolutely have to make sure that you’re thinking about when you’re selling a business. They include:

Make sure that you have a well written sale contract

It’s essential to make sure that you’re using a sales contract that is legally binding financial agreement, otherwise you could run into all sorts of problems. It’s always a good idea to work with your local law team to put together a contract.

Some of the things that a business sales contract should contain include:

  • A price and a payment plan which outlines how you’re going to receive payment and when.
  • A clear outline of what’s included in the sale.
  • Any other conditions of sale, including things like non-disclosure agreements and similar.

As I’ve said, you should always get your sales contract checked by a qualified lawyer, otherwise you might run into problems.

Starting a New Business? Get Competent Legal Assistance

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May 1, 2018
New Business Legal Assistance

As you redouble your efforts to get your new business off the ground, the last thing you need is to be faced with unpleasant surprises along the way. By hiring expert commercial lawyers from the start, you can reduce the likelihood of lawsuits and liability. Most small business entrepreneurs often worry if they can afford to hire a lawyer amidst other heavy expenses; after all, small businesses are often strapped for cash and they hardly have any extra for legal fees. The truth of the matter is that legal fees are often much more affordable than people believe. The nominal charges for hiring legal assistance can help prove you with comfort and security knowing that your business interests are protected.

There are likely to be adverse financial implications if you postpone seeking legal assistance. Most people tend to hire legal help only when they are actually confronted with a problem (for example, a customer may sue you). Choosing to invest a nominal amount of money in seeking legal assistance will help you save money and protect your business because there is less likelihood of unpleasant shocks along the way. Prevention is always better than cure especially where business interests are concerned.

Feeling Insecure about your Future after Divorce?

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March 15, 2018
Feeling Insecure

Top Lawyers can help you Negotiate a Fair Property Settlement

Although it is a genuinely stressful and daunting experience for many, there is no denying that divorce is an undeniable truth for many couples in modern day Australia. Seeking the services of reliable family lawyers like Family Lawyers Perth can go a long way in reducing the stress, time and money spent on divorce proceedings. Hostility, anger and resentment often tend to cloud your judgement and impair your decision-making ability.

The negative feelings and consequent lack of communication can make it difficult to agree on important matters including custody, division of property and assets as well as spousal support and so on. Such feelings of anger, resentment, fear, insecurity and rejection can be intensified if there has been a history of infidelity or violence etc. In such cases, choosing to represent your own case can prove to be a costly blunder and you may miss out on your rightful share. An experienced divorce lawyer can help you keep a clear head, uphold your rights and view your options objectively.

Wish to Dispute the Contents of a Will?

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September 20, 2017
Contest a Will

Following the Legal Process can help you Contest a Will

If you are suspicious or dissatisfied with the contents of a Will for various reasons, you can legally contest it in a court of law. Engaging the services of top Wills lawyers can help increase the likelihood of a decision in your favour. However, it’s important to note that the decision of the court is final and binding and cannot be disobeyed or violated by the applicant or beneficiaries.

A Will may be contested for several reasons as described below:

  • You suspect that the testator (the individual making the Will) lacked capacity at the time when he or she drew up the Will. This could be due to mental or physical infirmity. Health conditions such as Alzheimer’s, dementia, alcohol addiction etc may result in lack of capacity.