Publications
Financial Agreements
Financial Agreements – Back to Basics
This Webinar looks at the basics of drafting and advising on a financial agreement and minimising the risk of a financial agreement under the Family Law Act 1975 (Cth) (FLA) being found not to be binding or being set aside. It covers: Ensuring compliance with the relevant sections of the FLA Subject matter When is an agreement...
Section 90B Binding Financial Agreements: Precision Drafting for Now and Into the Future
The reality is that, for some clients, happily ever after involves the parties eventually going their separate ways. When relationship breakdown occurs, how watertight is a financial agreement under the Family Law Act 1975 (Cth) (FLA)? This paper takes a risk-averse approach to financial agreements, examining some of the...
Ink on the Wedding Dress: Ticking Time Bombs in Financial Agreements
Introduction When drafting and advising on financial agreements it is obviously necessary to refer to the technical requirements for an agreement to be binding (contained in ss 90G(1) or 90UJ Family Law Act 1975 (Cth) (FLA)) to ensure they are met, rather than rely upon the possibility of the agreement being “saved “ under ss...
Binding Financial Agreements: Drafting with the End in Mind
The reality is that, for some clients, happily ever after will involve the parties going their separate ways. When relationship breakdown occurs, how watertight is a financial agreement under the Family Law Act 1975 (Cth) (FLA)? This paper looks at taking a risk averse approach to financial agreements, some of the risky...
Bamboozled and bewildered – duress, undue influence and financial agreements
Duress and undue influence are factors which may vitiate a contract. They often overlap and are frequently used interchangeably, or at least pleaded in the alternative. The decision of Thorne v Kennedy [2017] HCA 49; (2017) FLC 93-807 is the most recent High Court authority addressing these principles. The judgment was not...
Financial Agreements: still worth the candle?
Post Thorne v Kennedy (2017) FLC 93-807, family lawyers and clients have reconsidered the worth of financial agreements under the Family Law Act 1975 (FLA). At the outset, it is impossible to guarantee to clients that financial agreements are binding and will not be set aside. Lawyers can, however, take steps to reduce the...
The Truly Binding Finanical Agreement – Is concise drafting the key?
In a post Thorne v Kennedy [2017] HCA 49; (2017) FLC 93-807 landscape, it has never been more important to draft financial agreements with precision, fairness and full disclosure. This paper concentrates on the drafting essentials to minimise the risk of a financial agreement being found not to be binding or being set aside....
Bullet-proof financial agreements—rare as hens’ teeth? Looking at financial agreements after Thorne v Kennedy
There is probably no other aspect of family law which has been subject to such a barrage of legislative changes, prospective legislative changes and contradictory judgments, than financial agreements. The High Court delivered its judgment in Thorne v Kennedy [2017] HCA 49; (2017) FLC 93-807 on 8 November 2017, apparently...
Hot Cases in family law – 2018
The most important cases in 2018 have been diverse. This paper looks at some of these. Financial agreements continue to raise new legal issues, and defining a de facto relationship continues to be far more problematic than one would expect. An unusual case involved the ability of an adult child to access the court file of his...
Gloomfield – why subject matter is so important in financial agreements
The subject matter of a financial agreement is important. The parties and their lawyers overlooked this fundamental and preliminary point in the long-running Bloomfield & Grainger litigation which commenced in 2014 and ended in 2018. There were many hearings at which no issue was taken as to whether or not the litigation...
