Community Questions - Take 7

This month Ben and Heather addressed a wide array of family law questions from the community, touching on a number of common issues faced by people going through divorce and separation.The questions included:Medical Court Orders: I have court orders giving me sole parental responsibility for my child's medical matters, but the medical centre is still allowing my ex to make decisions.  What should I do?Passport Applications: I want to go overseas with my child, but my ex won't sign the passport application.  What can I do?Visitation in Prison:  My ex has gone to prison recently.  Can I prevent future visitation by my children?Mediation Costs: It's been recommended that I have a solicitor & a barrister at mediation.  Do I need to go to this expense?Domestic Violence: I failed to show up at to court when police charged my ex for domestic violence.  Will this count against me in Family Court?Relocation: My partner is relocating.  Do we need to get a lawyer involved to change parenting arrangements?Property Settlement: If I buy a new car before the property settlement is completed can my ex make a claim on the car?Advising Your Ex: Do I have to advise my ex that I've enrolled our child in daycare, when the child lives with me 100% of the time and I'm paying the costs?Supervised Visits: At what age can a child choose not to attend supervised visits?Episode note (important): This episode includes discussion of parenting arrangements and property matters in response to listener questions, recorded before changes to family law provisions commenced on 6 May 2024 (parenting) and 10 June 2025 (property). The way the Court approaches these issues has been updated since this recording, so some legal references in these parts of the episode may now be out of date. Please seek current legal advice and refer to the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia and Attorney-General’s Department resources for the latest information.