Why Divorce Rate in Australia is So High?

What is a marriage?

Divorce causes a marriage to end legally. This is a bitter experience in anyone’s life. But before unraveling the facts of divorce let’s get to know about marriage first. Marriage is the union of two people by which they recognise their life together and have a happy sexual life.

But in legal terms, marriage is a contract between two people enforced by law. It is a social event that forms a family but there are legal consequences too. Starting from raising the children to protecting the family residence, inheriting from the other partner can be the legal consequences.

What is a divorce legally?

When one of the partners decides not to live together anymore feeling uncomfortable with the marriage, he or she can demand a divorce. But divorce is a legal term too. Divorce entails canceling all the legal responsibilities, hence dissolving the contract between a couple.

No-fault divorce;1975

The divorce rate was very high in Australia before 1975. According to the Australian Institute of Family Studies, The rate reached its peak in the 1970s at 4.6 per 1,000 residents. This rate was very alarming and had to be reduced. That’s why the Government of Australia, established new law in 1975. The Family Law Act 1975 established the principle of no-fault divorce. It also established a federal court to deal with family law issues. The Family Court of Australia quotes,” No-fault divorce means that a court does not consider which partner was at fault in the marriage breakdown. The only ground for divorce is the irretrievable breakdown of the relationship, demonstrated by 12 months of separation.” This means the couple has to be separated for at least 12 months before applying for a divorce.

How to prove separation if the couple lives together?

The couple needs to stay separate for at least 12 months before filing for divorce. But they can still live under the same roof. For that, they have to break the marital relationship completely which may include:

• no sexual activity
• living in different rooms
• not having meals together
• having separate bank accounts
• not sharing household services
• not representing themselves as married to acquaintances

Now let’s discuss the details of the divorce rate in Australia.

What is the divorce rate in Australia?

In the 1960s and the 1970s, the divorce rate was very high. It was about 4.6 persons per 1000 residents. But it declined when the Family Law Act 1975 was passed. This law supported no-fault divorce. And reduced to just 1.9 till 2016. But it raised again in 2017 up to 2.0. Hence the divorce percentage in Australia has reduced.

Another reason for the decline of the divorce rate in Australia is late marriage or marriage between same-sex. Same-sex marriage is now legal in Australia. In the first 6 months of 2018, 99 percent of marriages were between same-sex.

The divorce rate was 40% which has been constant for many years. But due to the corona pandemic, it has been a rush to the courts since this summer. But new statistics show, in 2019 the divorce rate has been highly increasing and reached around 47%. And Brisbane has registered 30% more divorces already by the summer of 2020.

From these studies, it is clear that a pandemic affects marriages severely.

Duration of marriage:

The largest proportion of couples separating and then divorcing are those who have been married 9 years or less, which is about 43%.

The couples who had been married for 20 years or more are highly encouraged in separation. In 1990 it was 20% and by 2010 it increased to 28%.

At what age couples are divorcing?

In 2016, the divorce rate was highest during the age 25-29 for both men and women. The couples have a steady relationship in their 40s. After 55, the couples become less likely to divorce.

Divorces involving children:

The amount of divorces involving children under 18 years has been decreasing. In 1975, the proportion of divorces involving children under 18 years was 67.6%. It decreased over time and became 47.1% in 2017. The reason behind this is the rise of divorces in short-term marriages.

Have same-sex marriages affected the divorce rate in Australia?

After the changes in Marriage Act 1961 same-sex marriage is now legal. There were 3,149 same-sex weddings were registered in Australia till 30th June 2018. And they can also get divorced but not many divorces are reported from these couples.

What are the reasons behind divorces?

People go into a marriage with so much hope. They decide to get married when they discover themselves in a comfortable relationship. It indicates the perfect bond between two persons. So, what causes that perfect bond to break apart? Why do they go for a divorce?

The Australian Divorce Transition Project categorised the reasons behind divorce into 3 dimensions. They are ‘affective issues’, ‘abusive reasons’ and ‘external pressures’.

An Australian study reported percent of divorces to blame “affective issues”. These affective issues are:

• Problems of communication 27%
• Lost connection 21%
• Trust issues 20%

The other causes of divorce in Australia can be:

• Abuse either physically or emotionally 7.4%
• Abuse via drugs or alcohol 7.4%
• Financial issues 4.7%
• Work pressure 2.7%
• Interference of family 0.6%
• Health issues 4.7%

Tips for a long term marriage

• Treat marriage as a long-term commitment
• Prioritize your partner’s need
• Respect your partner
• There should be no trust issues
• Maintain a happy sexual relationship
• Cooperate with your partner
• Be willing to change
• Maintain equity
• Manage time for each other
• Support the decision made by your spouse
• Avoid fighting unnecessarily

How long will it take to finalise the divorce?

Normally it takes 4 months to procure a Divorce Certificate or court order. It may take longer if there are other difficulties. Remarriage should not be planned before the divorce is finalised.

Grounds to file for a divorce:

• prove that the couple has been separated for no less than 12 months of period.
• the couple has been married for more than 2 years.
• attended the required counselling with the family court if married for less than 2 years.
• no fault of any of the spouses is needed.
• at least one spouse must be an Australian citizen, domiciled, or resident in Australia for 12 months.

What is the procedure to get a divorce?

Getting a divorce is not the same anymore. That is the reason that the divorce rates in Australia have reduced. If you are thinking to get a divorce in Brisbane then Aylward Game can help you easily. Read the points below to get an idea about getting a divorce.

• Live separate lives: Before applying for a job you must separate for at least 12 months. You can get back in touch without re-starting the 12 months for about 3 months. For instance, if you have lived separated for 4 months and again got together for 3 months you will only have to live 8 months separately to complete the 12 months.
• You can live separately under one roof: You can share the same roof even when you are separated. The court will check if you are having sex, sharing meals, or sharing bank accounts. Your relatives should believe that you are separated.
• Remarrying: Don’t think to remarry until the divorce is finalized. Don’t make quick plans. You can get married once the divorce is granted.
• Property and children’s arrangement: The divorce will not resolve the property or children’s issue. You will have to file a separate case for this issue.
• Married for less time: If you are married for a small time and still demanding a divorce. Then you should visit the family counselling. Get a certificate from them and submit it to the court.

When applied for the divorce, do I have to attend the court hearing?

It depends on some conditions. You may or may not have to attend the court hearing. Let’s have a look at them:

• If you don’t have any children under 18 years. Then you will not have to attend the court hearing; it applies on both sides.
• If a joint application is applied then you will not have to attend the court hearing, even if you have children under 18 years.
• If a sole application is applied then you may have to attend the court hearing on having a child under 18 years.

How much will a divorce cost in Brisbane?

The typical cost of a divorce consists of legal costs and court fees. The amount of both fees is based on the procedural value, which depends on the income and assets of the spouses. A general figure is therefore not possible.

However, it costs $890 for every hearing. Usually, each spouse pays their own lawyer’s costs plus half the court fees. In this case, the 50% sharing of the legal fees should be contractually agreed in advance utilising a cost-sharing agreement between the spouses.

If this is the case, each spouse only pays half of the costs otherwise incurred. If you want to get a divorce from Brisbane, you shouldn’t be afraid of the divorce costs. If the financial means are not sufficient for a divorce Qld, the court and legal expenses will be covered by the state – and the chances of this are good.

How can Aylward Game help?

Though Australia’s divorce rate has declined some issues can demand a divorce. We can help you in many ways to solve the issue. For more information on your specific matter, please don’t hesitate to contact one of our experienced Brisbane, Gold Coast, and Sunshine Coast Family lawyers at Aylward Game Solicitors.

Article Source: Divorce rate in Australia 

Divorce Property Settlement and Child Custody

 

Settlement of family law issues after separation deals with the most basic and raw emotions. Putting one’s life and that of your family into documents and letters is a process that can make a person feel empty and emotional.

Divorce Property Settlement Brisbane and Child Custody are often at the front of mind for those facing separation or divorce.

Collaborative practice is one way in which separated parties can resolve issues quite quickly. The first meeting can be a little uneasy but once the process is explained to everyone and being able to talk things out and express your points of view with your collaborative practitioner makes the process much easier. Collaborative practice allows parties to talk without just being a person on a page of a document. Professionals such as counselors and accountants can also be included who can assist in working through issues and help reach a resolution. In a collaborative practice meeting if you feel you are unable or uneasy about putting your point of view across then your collaborative lawyer will help you and be by your side every step of the way.

Read more: Divorce Asset Split In Australia: Who Gets What In A Property Settlement?

Today’s world of electronic communication can be impersonal and dealing with issues that affect you and your family’s future in this way is not always the best way for resolution. It is always easy to criticise and argue when it’s written on a page or screen. Dealing face to face can be difficult but usually brings out the truth and helps people realise the consequences of their actions. Collaborative practice is a very good way to finalise financial and children’s issues after a breakup in your relationship.

To find out more about the collaborative practice and Divorce Property Settlement Brisbane please call 1800 217 217

Article Source: Divorce Property Settlement Brisbane

SEPARATION, DIVORCE AND FINANCIAL PLANNING

 

SEPARATION, DIVORCE AND FINANCIAL PLANNING: What You Need To Know

My financial advisers in their recent newsletter provided advice to their clients in regard to a separation in their relationship. The financial adviser wrote, “It is an unfortunate fact of life that couples will separate and even divorce.  The financial adviser went on to say that their advisers have dealt with these difficult issues and have become sensitive to the requirements of a separating couple.

The advice given in the newsletter was, “If you and your partner have decided to separate your first course of action is to contact a solicitor who can take you through the legal process of separating your assets.  Assets include the family home, any investment properties, cash in the bank, managed funds, your superannuation, home contents, cars, etc.”  While the division of all these assets has to be determined by the Family Law Courts your adviser can help you with the following.  The newsletter went on to list the various areas where a financial Planning adviser can assist.  The assistance they provided was as follows:

Budgeting

The financial adviser can help you to establish a new budget for you in line with any changes in income and assets.

Managing joint loans

Most couples will have some form of joint loans.  The financial adviser can help you with the best way to pay these off or bring the debt down to make it more manageable for each partner.

Selling any property

The adviser went on to say that they can assist in selling the property in the most tax-effective way.  The newsletter goes on to say that sometimes the couple may choose to keep the family home and rent it out or one partner may choose to buy the other out.  The adviser can discuss the most tax-effective way for their client to sell any property investments that they have due to separation.

Re-financing and obtaining a new loan

The financial advisers have a financial Planning team that can discuss re-financing with their clients if they choose to take on the loan of the other spouse or obtaining new finance for a new property to live in.

Changing beneficiaries for super and insurance policies

The newsletter goes on to say that the clients’ superannuation is classed as an asset when it comes to the separation of property and the client will have assigned a beneficiary on the superannuation and insurance policies in the event of death.  The newsletter further states that when a client separates it will be necessary to change the beneficiaries on both of these policies and potentially even split safer assets with their former partner.

Managing long term financial needs

The financial advisers state that whether it be investing, budgeting, or making a property purchase the financial adviser can assist with the long-term goals and decisions of the client.

The newsletter concludes with the following statement, “While all of our advisers are impartial and each members’ details are strictly confidential we do recommend that if our members are separating that one member considers taking on another adviser within the financial advising group.  This will not cost either party but enables us to offer you both the best possible advice without any concern for impartiality or conflict.”

This differs entirely from the practice in a legal firm.  Solicitors can only act for one party and are unable to provide any advice whatsoever to the other party in a separation.

It is always beneficial to parties when separating to not only obtain legal advice but to obtain financial advice on all financial issues which may be affecting them as a result of the separation but in particular in regard to taxation consequences and the restructuring of their assets once the separation has occurred.

Article Source: SEPARATION, DIVORCE AND FINANCIAL PLANNING

Why Divorce Rate in Australia been increasing for years?

Lawyers see a 40% increase Divorce Rate in Australia has been constant for years – but this year it is on the move. Corona divorces have been causing a rush to court since this summer; delays are to be expected. It is no secret to anyone that a considerable percentage of marriages end in divorce Qld. But really, how many marriages end in divorce? Below we publish the rate of divorces according to official data from the last 10 years, and we compare them with other countries.

In our country, in the last decade, the average age at which men marry for the first time has been 35 years, in the case of women, the average age is already 33. Regarding the number of marriages, in Australia, the average for the last decade is about 165,000 marriages a year. Do you want to know how many of them fail? Let’s see why they fail and what percentage of divorces there is in Australia.

According to the latest data published in Australia in 2020, there were 97,960 divorces. Looking at the duration of the marriage, it turns out that there were 240 divorces whose marriage had lasted less than one year. If we expand the time range, there were 1,571 divorces from weddings that had been less than two years old. And if we grow a little more that year, there were 2,782 divorces from couples who had been married for less than 3 years.

Therefore we see that most marriages do not fail in the first years, but naturally, life as a couple can go through difficult times, some factors such as the ones we have mentioned can lead to divorce or love may end.

What percentage of marriages end in divorce?

While the new figures from Statistics Australia  2019 show an around 47% standard for Australia divorce rate, this year it will be exciting: 2020 is already a year of divorce. Summer is an extreme time for a divorce in Brisbane. But this summer we registered an increase in the divorce rate in Australia by another 30 percent.

Social isolation exposed affairs

Estimates that 80 percent of marriages fail because of cheating. “As has been shown, affairs quickly break out during mutual social isolation. Because today a lot of evidence is digital – for example, photos on the cell phone or WhatsApp messages. During the Corona period, some people became careless, practically cheated in front of their partner, and then left their cell phone lying around unlocked.

Definition and Requirements of a Consensual Divorce Brisbane

A divorce does not have to be a reason for the spouses to part ways in a war of roses. If both spouses want a divorce, and there are no disputes on any other divorce-related issue, a consensual divorce is an option. The term of the consensual divorce is no longer anchored in law, but instead describes certain circumstances that can arise in the context of a typical divorce Qld.

In addition to the general requirements for divorce, such as waiting for the year of separation according to the Australian  Civil Code (exception: lightning divorce), the spouses must agree on the consequences of the divorce in the event of mutual divorce.
Also includes:

• The custody and access rights for the children
• The maintenance
• The dissolution of the household effects
• The division of property

The consent must be evident from the application for divorce. The appointed divorce lawyer takes care of this and applies it to the competent court.

Why do divorces occur?

No one said marriage was easy, and many factors can lead to failure. From the outset, it isn’t easy to get it right when choosing a person with whom you are going to share the rest of your life. Then there are the circumstances, for example, if economic, health, family problems, mistreatment, or infidelity arise.

As if all this weren’t enough to shake expectations, having children will be the ultimate stress test. Many people do not accept the fact of taking a back seat, or the sacrifices that parenthood implies, or they feel that their partner has changed and is not the same.

Increasing Divorce Rate In Australia

Costs and Savings in a Friendly Divorce Brisbane

The typical cost of a divorce consists of legal and court costs. The amount of both fees is based on the so-called procedural value, which depends on the income and assets of the spouses. A general figure is therefore not possible. Court costs are only incurred for the consequences of the divorce, about which the court has to act.

Usually, each spouse pays their own lawyer’s costs plus half the court costs. In this case, the 50% sharing of the legal fees should be contractually agreed in advance utilising a cost-sharing agreement between the spouses.

If this is the case, each spouse only pays half of the costs otherwise incurred. If you want to get a divorce from Brisbane, you shouldn’t be afraid of the divorce costs. If the financial means are not sufficient for a divorce Qld, the court and legal expenses will be covered by the state – and the chances of this are good.

Process and Duration of an Amicable Divorce

The process of mutual divorce is no different from regular divorce proceedings:

• After the end of the year of separation, applying for divorce at the court. Only a lawyer is authorised to do so because of the compulsory lawyer.
• Payment of advance court costs for the court to act.
• Service of the application for divorce to the other spouse (respondent) by the court.
• Unless previously excluded: pension adjustment. This happens automatically if the marriage has lasted at least three years. In the case of shorter marriages, the spouses must apply for it to be carried out.
• Divorce date and divorce decision in court, at which both spouses must be present.

With the increasing divorce rate in Australia, the length of the divorce proceedings always depends on how many disputes exist between the parties, and how overloaded the courts are. In contrast to a contentious process, the court does not have to deal with the disputed consequences of the divorce, so that the duration of the proceedings is significantly reduced.

• An amicable divorce without the implementation of the pension adjustment can be completed after approx. 2-3 months.
• If the amicable divorce is carried out with equalisation of benefits, it is more likely to take about 6-12 months.

Pros and Cons of a Friendly Divorce

As stated earlier, a friendly divorce has advantages and disadvantages.

Benefits:

• Cost savings :
  1. Only one lawyer needs to be hired. With a corresponding sharing agreement between the spouses, this results in a reduction in legal fees by half.
  2. There are no court costs for settling the consequences of a divorce if the parties have already agreed on this out of court.

• Time-saving:
  1. The separation period of at least one year instead of three is sufficient to assume that the marriage will break down.
  2. A single court appointment is usually sufficient, as there are no disputes about the consequences of divorce, and there are no corresponding judicial negotiations.

• Disadvantage:
  1. If only one lawyer is hired: Only the partner who has hired the lawyer will be represented by a lawyer. Counseling for both spouses is only possible if the mutual interests of the spouses are balanced, i.e. with the full agreement of the spouses.
  2. The spouse without their lawyer is mainly incapable of acting in court because of the compulsory lawyer.

This risk can always be avoided if each spouse engages his or her lawyer despite the mutual agreement. You then have to bear the full legal fees – but you can be sure that you have received good advice and that fair arrangements have been made. The cost savings in terms of court costs, as well as the accelerated process flow, then remain with the parties where the divorce rate in Australia is increasing.

Expert Brisbane divorce lawyer

If you are interested in the percentage of divorces in Australia because yours is going through difficult times, our recommendation is to seek advice as soon as possible. In this way, reliable and personalised information is available. In this way, many fears and uncertainties are avoided, you will know what the costs are and the procedures that must be carried out.

Increasing divorce rate Australia Aylward Game Solicitors has offices in Brisbane, Gold Coast, Sunshine Coast, Australia. You have to call 1800 217 217 (Free),07 3236 0001 or send the following email mail@aylwardgame.com.au for divorce in Brisbane. Our expert divorce attorneys will be happy to assess your case and offer you all the advice you need.

Frequently Ask Question 

What is the divorce rate in Australia?

Lawyers see a 40% increase in Divorce Rate in Australia.

Which judge is competent?

In principle, the competent judge is the Family Judge of the place of residence of the family.

Who can sue for divorce?

Only the spouses can act in divorce. The couple’s children or third parties cannot work in a spouse’s place, even if the latter dies during the procedure.

How to legally define divorce, Brisbane?

Divorce is a dissolution of marriage, pronounced by the judge, at the request of the spouses or of one of them, in the cases provided for by law. Divorce is not the nullity, that is to say, the retroactive destruction of the marriage, declared by the judge in the event of failure of a condition of marriage formation.

Is the assistance of a lawyer compulsory?

Yes, the assistance of a lawyer is compulsory for a divorce.

• More information on “Divorce Rate in Australia.”

Article Source: Divorce Rate Australia