Family Law Solicitors Glenroy

Littlejohn Legal is an experienced Family Law firm based in the heart of Melbourne and serving all surrounding suburbs including Glenroy

We care about our clients and strive to provide the highest quality of service and professionalism to guide you through any family law issues you are facing including but not limited to:

• Divorce proceedings & divorce property settlements
• Complex family law matters
• Intervention orders
• Binding financial agreements
• Consent orders & parenting plans
• Declarations of a de facto relationship’s existence

Some Of The Facets Of Our Family Law Practice/firm:

The Divorce Process In Victoria

Divorce can be a complicated matter involving a number of questions such as the safety of your family, process of splitting assets, making alternative living arrangements and more.

Littlejohn Legal can guide you through the divorce process and help you avoid as much stress as possible.

A number of steps can be taken to protect yourself during the divorce proceeding such as:

• Changing usernames and passwords for online profiles and accounts to prevent stalking
• Make arrangements with your financial service provider or bank to potentially close any open accounts or put a pause until proceedings are over
• Swap out locks for your home

We will help you make the appropriate steps and get on with your life sooner.

Applying For A Divorce

The fundamental grounds for divorce require that you have been separated for a minimum of 12 months. At times situations arises in which one spouse is unable to leave the family home, which is often referred to as “separation under the same roof”

You must provide proof of such an arrangement in the form of corroboration from a family member or friend. An important tip for married couples is to make sure you can present your marriage certificate.

Divorce & Children

When it comes to Children been involved in a Divorce the general assumption is that decision-making in these areas will be shared by both parents in order to preserve the best interests of the child or children. There are times however where this is just not feasible or there are safety concerns such as domestic violence/abusive partners.

In these cases, the outcome will be decided by the court in this scenario. e, which could result in outcomes such as granting all responsibility to one of the parties or setting up a “shared parental responsibility” arrangements for both parties in the case.

Family Violence Matters & The Protection Of Your Children

Having had vast experiences in family law Littlejohn Legal has dealt with a number of cases whereby family violence is present and protection of children is a priority in the divorce proceeding.

The courts may grant you sole custody based on the nature of the violence and child arrangements.

Family violence can take many forms such as:

• Physical, mental, sexual and verbal abuse
• Coercion and financial control along with other controlling behaviours to inflict fear
• Stalking and other behaviour such as installing spyware to monitor phone calls and communication
• Physical harm to pets
• Anything else that is done to cause pain and fear for a party in an affected relationship

We can help with a variety of legal tools such as Apprehensive Violence Orders (AVO’s) and securing Intervention orders to protect yourself and loved ones.

Assets & Liabilities – Divorce & Financial Support

One of the frequently asked questions that arises in the process of a divorce is who is entitled to different assets and the name it’s registered to.

Some of the assets that may be of concern include:

• Family home
• Bank accounts (joint accounts & children accounts)
• Vehicles (cars, motorcycles etc)
• Artworks, memorabilia and other collectables or possessions of value

Littlejohn Legal can help you identify the value of your property through independent appraisals such as real-estate valuations  from qualified real-estate agents along with potential advice from mechanics or car dealerships.

Intervention Orders

Intervention orders can be a complex and frightening experience but are powerful tools to assist you in a family law crisis. A specialist family lawyer with knowledge and experience of how the family law jurisdiction intersects with the Magistrates Court and Crimes Family Violence jurisdiction, can best advise you on how to protect you and your children utilizing these jurisdictions.

We can help you with:

• Personal representation, defending your personal safety through the process of obtaining a intervention or restraining order, including when children are involved in the dispute (interim or final)
• Intervention order modification applications
• Restraining order applications designed to safeguard your belongings and other possessions

What Exactly Is The Distinction Between An Intervention Order And A Restraining Order?

Intervention orders and restraining orders are often confused as been the same thing but are quite different in what they do and how they work.

An intervention order is broken up into two parts an “interim order” which is a short-term temporary order granted by a court typically made to respond to an issue where speed and urgency is required. These can be issued without the respondent being present in court or being aware of the order.

The other type is a “final order” which is more permanent and granted by a court once evidence is reviewed by a judge. These orders have strong specific conditions that if violated by the other party can result in criminal prosecution immediately.

A restraining order however is a legal document designed to restrict a very specific action to the other party and is typically used to restrict the proximity of an individual.

For example an ex-partner is prohibited from coming within a 25km radius of the affected party which may stop them from coming to their home or place of work.

Similar to intervention orders if a restraining order is breached the police can proceed with a criminal arrest.