Blog
-
Story Bridge Protestor‘s message – “Equal rights – not in the family law court”
Author: Watts McCray Comments: 0
A disgruntled father has staged a dramatic protest against the Family Law Court on Brisbane’s Story Bridge. At 4:20 am, an unidentified man climbed the bridge wearing a harness, and hung a banner at the top that read “Equal rights – not in the family law court”. The identity, motive and personal circumstances of the protestor are unknown, but the stunt is of a similar vein to ‘Mick’, who closed the Sydney Harbour Bridge in May this year to get his message across – “Kids First” and “Plz Help My Kids”. While ‘Mick’ succeeded in attracting media attention and spoke [...]
-
New child abduction laws to put-off fleeing parents
Author: Watts McCray Comments: 0
The Federal Government has announced new measures to prevent parents from fleeing overseas with their children during Family Law disputes. According to the Family Law Council, it is illegal to take a child overseas without the consent of the other parent but it is not illegal to keep a child overseas when the child is taken abroad with consent for a holiday or other reasons. The government’s new measures address this loophole through which parents are effectively abducting their children. Under new laws that are expected to be introduced into parliament next year, such abductions will be a criminal offense [...]
-
Is a declining marriage rate to blame for the neglect of children?
Author: Watts McCray Comments: 0
A recent report by Professor Patrick Parkinson, a law professor at The University of Sydney and Special Counsel at Watts McCray Lawyers, says that plunging Australian marriage rates are having a detrimental effect on the wellbeing of Australian children. Titled “For Kids’ Sake – Repairing the Social Environment for Australian Children and Young People” and commissioned by the Australian Christian Lobby, the report was presented to Federal Parliament last week as part of National Child Protection Week. The research based report attributes increased rates of child abuse and neglect, children being placed in foster care and rising teenage mental health [...]
-
Debate continues over proposed changes to the Family Law Act
Author: Watts McCray Comments: 0
In late 2010, proposed changes to the Family Law Act were presented to the Federal Government. The changes, designed to provide better protection for families and children at risk of violence, remain before the parliament. The proposed changes include a new definition of family violence with a list of examples of the kind of behaviour that might fall into that definition, along with a revised definition of abuse. They are also aimed at removing the barriers that might stop parents raising safety concerns for their children in court, and reducing the weight placed on shared parenting. If passed, the changes [...]
-
Man closes Sydney Harbour Bridge to get his message across – “Plz help my kids”
Author: Watts McCray Comments: 6
A Sydney father went to desperate measures this morning to protest against the rights of children and fathers when parents separate and divorce. The man – “Mick”, 38 – climbed to the top of the Sydney Harbour Bridge at 5am this morning using ropes to climb the arch. Once at the top, he hung two banners, reading “Kids First” and “Plz Help My Kids”. From the top of the bridge on his mobile phone, the man spoke to different members of the media. He told the Nine Network: “If I have to stuff 4 million people around for one morning [...]
-
What does marriage mean today?
Author: Watts McCray Comments: 1
Wind the clock back one hundred years, and the concept of marriage was simple. A man met a woman, they formed a relationship and then committed to one another until death did them part, through binding marriage vows. With the rise of popular culture and increasing secularisation, movies, music and fanciful story lines created a romanticised notion of marriage. Perhaps we expected more from the tradition as ideas of love, romance and happiness became more important. The formality of marriage also relaxed – think themed weddings and writing your own vows. As divorce statistics drastically increased towards the end of [...]
-
Division over proposed changes to the Family Law Act
Author: Watts McCray Comments: 7
Proposed changes to the Family Law Act have been introduced into Parliament for consideration, that focus on the best interests and safety of the child. The government released the draft changes in November 2010, stating that the changes were designed to provide better protection for families and children at risk of violence. The proposed changes to the Family Law Act include a new definition of family violence with a list of examples of the kind of behaviour that might fall into that definition, along with a revised definition of abuse. At the core of the family violence definition is a [...]
-
Understanding your legal rights in a de facto relationship
Author: Watts McCray Comments: 0
Today, the law recognises the many different forms and shapes that relationships and families take. Married, non-married, de facto and same sex couplings are all different relationship varietals that garner legal rights. Because of the broad and wide definitions of de facto relationships, many people don’t realise that they are actually in one. If you’re in a de facto relationship, do you know your legal rights? A relationship is given de facto status, for property settlement purposes, when two people have lived together for 2 years and are not married. Since 1999, same sex couples may also be recognised for [...]
-
Making shared care work
Author: Watts McCray Comments: 0
It’s never an ideal situation, but despite the difficulties associated with divorced parents sharing the responsibility and care of their children, it can work. What’s the key? Making sure that any arrangement made is in the best interest of the children. Of course, it’s hard to legislate on what solution or arrangement is best suited to every child – every family situation and divorce conditions are different. Which is why there is no legal presumption that shared care arrangements are indeed best for the children. However new laws introduced in 2006 require that mediators and courts consider the option that [...]
-
Prenuptial agreements – worth the discomfort
Author: Watts McCray Comments: 0
The conversation over who would get what and how money and assets would be divided if a relationship ended is never going to be an easy one – some call it a romance killer! But in today’s world it’s a tough truth that in many cases it’s a wise decision to broach the subject.