Divorce, Parenting and Property – Legal Insights from Village Family Lawyers

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Divorce, Parenting & Property – Legal Insights from Village Family Lawyers is your go-to source for calm, clear guidance on separation, parenting arrangements, financial settlements, mediation, and more. Hosted by Lauren Wilson, Founder and Director of Village Family Lawyers, each episode unpacks real questions faced by families during major life transitions — with compassion, legal expertise, and a focus on child and family wellbeing. Whether you’re exploring mediation, preparing for court, or trying to understand your rights, this podcast offers practical insights to help you move forward

  1. Sep 24

    Child Custody in Australia: What Actually Gets Decided

    Who gets the children when parents separate in Australia? There is no rule that children go to one parent, and no preference based on whether you are their mother or their father. Village Family Lawyers explains what is actually decided, and why custody is not the term Australian family law uses for parenting arrangements. This episode covers the two separate questions that replaced it, where a child lives and who makes the significant long-term decisions, and what each of sole custody, joint custodyand full custody usually means when someone says it. It also addresses the belief that keeps people living in a difficult house for months. Moving out does not, by itself, decide where your children live. Calm, plain English, and specific to Australian family law. Key takeaways Custody is not the term Australian family law uses for parenting arrangements. Two separate questionsreplaced it: where a child lives and spends time, and parental responsibility, meaning who makes the significant long-term decisions. Those two do not have to sit with the same parent. A child can live mainly with one parent while both continue making the big decisions together.There is no rule that children go to their mother, and no rule that young children go to one parent. What shapes an arrangement is practical rather than gendered.Since May 2024 there is no presumption of equal shared parental responsibility. There has never been apresumption of equal time in Australia. What changed is that courts are no longer required to consider equal time as a step in the process.Moving out of the family home does not, by itself, decide where children live. A long-running informalarrangement can carry some weight later.  Book a free 15-minute DiscoveryOnline Booking : https://villagefamilylawyers.com.au/booking-request/ Call: 1300 413 997 Parenting Arrangements:https://villagefamilylawyers.com.au/service/parenting-arrangements/ Search terms child custody Australia, who gets the children after separation, parenting arrangements Victoria, parentalresponsibility Australia, sole custody Australia, joint custody meaning, does the mother always get the children, custody vs parenting arrangements, family lawyer Mornington Peninsula, village family lawyers

    Child Custody in Australia: What Actually Gets Decided

  2. Sep 24

    How to Choose a Family Lawyer: Three Things You Can Check

    How do you choose a family lawyer when every practice describes itself in the same language? Village Family Lawyers sets out three things that can actually be verified, and onequestion worth asking that rarely appears on any website. This episode explains what the Law Institute of Victoria's specialist accreditation involves and how it is assessed, why a practice's approach to resolution matters more than its claimto avoid court, and why matching the individual lawyer to the shape of your matter changes the experience of it. It closes on timing, including the points where a conversation tends to be most useful, and what to listen for on a first call. Key takeaways The Law Institute of Victoria runs a specialist accreditation scheme in family law, assessed in three parts: a take-home assignment including a letter of advice and court documents, awritten exam of about three and a half hours, and a simulated client interview. It is assessed by the Law Institute rather than by the practice itself. A lawyer without accreditation is not the wrong choice. The right person for a matter may be whoever's particular experience fits it most closely.Almost every family law website says it tries to keep clients out of court, so the claim itself is not useful. What is underneath it is. A more revealing question is what a practice does when the other side stops engaging, because that is the situation behind a great deal of the delay and cost in family law.Family law is one field but not one job. A parenting matter between two anxious parents has little in common with working out what a discretionary trust means for a property pool.Book a free 15-minute DiscoveryOnline: https://villagefamilylawyers.com.au/booking-request/ Call: 1300 413 997 Meet the team:https://villagefamilylawyers.com.au/our-team/ Search: how to choose a family lawyer, best family lawyer Mornington Peninsula, LIV accredited family law specialist, accredited specialist family law Victoria, questions to ask a family lawyer,family lawyer first consultation, choosing a divorce lawyer Australia, family lawyer Mount Eliza, family lawyer Malvern, village family lawyers

    How to Choose a Family Lawyer: Three Things You Can Check

  3. Aug 21

    Are Family Trust Assets Included in a Property Settlement?

    Are family trust assets included in a property settlement in Australia? They can be, and the answer has far less to do with ownership than most people expect. Village Family Lawyers explains the two questions family law actually asks: who controls the trust and who benefits from it, and why the distribution history often carries more weight than the trust deed. This episode covers how trusts established before a relationship are treated, what changes when other family members are genuinely involved, what disclosure requires, and why moving assets in anticipation of a settlement tends to cost more than it saves. Key takeaways Family trust assets can form part of a property settlement in Australia. Legal ownership by the trust does not remove them from consideration.The two questions are control and benefit. Control means the practical kind, including who holds the appointor role.Where control and real benefit sit with one party, trust assets may be treated as property available for division.Where control genuinely sits elsewhere, the trust is more likely to be a financial resource, which still affects the outcome.Trusts established before the relationship are not automatically protected. How the trust was used during the relationship carries significant weight.Disclosure extends to trust deeds, financial statements, distribution records and loan accounts. Book a confidential consultation: www.villagefamilylawyers.com.au/booking-request Call: 1300 413 997 Property Settlement: www.villagefamilylawyers.com.au/service/property-settlement/

    Are Family Trust Assets Included in a Property Settlement?

  4. Aug 21

    Binding Financial Agreement or Consent Orders: Which One Do You Need?

    Binding financial agreement vs consent orders is the decision most people reach only after the hard conversations are already done. Village Family Lawyers explains what actually separates the two, why one is checked by a court and the other never is, and what each can do that the other cannot. The episode covers the strongest argument for a financial agreement, which most people have never heard, and the avoidable reasons agreements are set aside. It closes with four questions that get most people to a provisional answer before they speak to anyone. Key takeaways Consent orders are approved by the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia, which must be satisfied the terms are just and equitable before making them.A binding financial agreement never goes before a court. Nobody assesses whether it is fair, and its force depends on strict formal requirements being met exactly.A properly made financial agreement can operate to exclude the court’s power to make property or spousal maintenance orders about the matters it covers.A financial agreement can be made before a relationship ends. Consent orders cannot.Parenting arrangements cannot be dealt with in a financial agreement at all. Book a confidential consultation: www.villagefamilylawyers.com.au/booking-request Call: 1300 413 997 Financial Agreements and Asset Protection: www.villagefamilylawyers.com.au/service/asset-protection-financial-agreements/

    Binding Financial Agreement or Consent Orders: Which One Do You Need?

  5. Aug 21

    My Ex Controls the Money: What to Do When You Don’t Know What You Own

    My ex controls the money and knows more about our finances. It is one of the most common positions people findthemselves in at separation, and one of the most misunderstood. Village Family Lawyers explains why financial disclosure is a legal obligation in an Australian property matter rather than a courtesy, what that duty actuallycovers, and what a court can do when someone withholds information. This episode also covers a trap worth knowing about. A great deal of the guidance available online about protecting yourself financially in a separation was written for the United States and describes a different legal system entirely. Practical, calm, and specific to Australian family law.Key takeaways Financial disclosure is a legal duty owed by both parties in an Australian property matter. It is full and frank, and it continues throughout.Disclosure covers income, property, superannuation, business interests, trusts, loan accounts and debts, plus recent transfers and disposals.Where information is withheld, a court can order disclosure, draw an adverse inference, order costs, or set aside an agreement reached on false information.Gathering your own records early is the single most useful thing you can do, and partial records still help.Much of the online guidance on this topic is American and does not reflect Australian law.Book a free 15-minute Discovery Call:www.villagefamilylawyers.com.au/booking-request Call: 1300 413 997 Property Settlement:www.villagefamilylawyers.com.au/service/property-settlement/

    My Ex Controls the Money: What to Do When You Don’t Know What You Own

  6. Jul 17

    Can I Be Legally Separated While Still Living Under the Same Roof?

    Moving out isn't always possible when a relationship ends.Village Family Lawyers explains that Australian family law recognises separation under one roof as a valid form of legal separation — and that separation is defined by intention and conduct, not by where you live. This episode covers: what the law requires for separationunder one roof, why the date of separation matters, what evidence the court needs in a divorce application where parties stayed in the same home, and how to document your separation from the start. Read the full article:www.villagefamilylawyers.com.au/separation-under-one-roof-victoria/ Book a free 15-minute Discovery Call:www.villagefamilylawyers.com.au/booking-request Call: 1300 413 997 Divorce and Separation:www.villagefamilylawyers.com.au/divorce-separation/

    Can I Be Legally Separated While Still Living Under the Same Roof?

  7. Jul 17

    First Steps After Separation in Victoria: What to Do Now

    Time limits, financial rights, and why early advice changes everything The weeks after separation carry legal consequences mostpeople don't see coming. Village Family Lawyers explains the steps that matter most in Victoria: documenting the date of separation, understanding your financial rights before making any informal arrangements, and knowing the timelimits that can close off your options if you miss them. This episode covers: why the date of separation matterslegally, the two-year limit for de facto couples, what to do about joint finances, parenting arrangements and the difference between a parenting plan and consent orders, and why getting early legal advice is not the same as goingto court. Read the full article:www.villagefamilylawyers.com.au/first-steps-after-separation-victoria/ Book a free 15-minute Discovery Call:www.villagefamilylawyers.com.au/booking-request Call: 1300 413 997 Divorce and Separation:www.villagefamilylawyers.com.au/divorce-separation/

    First Steps After Separation in Victoria: What to Do Now

  8. Jul 17

    How Is Property Divided After Separation in Australia?

    How is property divided after separation in Australia? The short answer is: not automatically, and never by formula. Village Family Lawyers walks through the four-step legal framework that governs every property settlement — what goes into the property pool, how contributions are assessed(financial and non-financial), how future needs are factored in, and how the just and equitable standard actually works. We also cover the 2024-2025 family law reforms: mandatory financial disclosure obligations and the formal recognition of financial abuse and coercive control as factors in property settlement outcomes. If property settlement is on your horizon, this is theepisode to start with. Read the full article:www.villagefamilylawyers.com.au/how-is-property-divided-after-separation-australia/ Book a free 15-minute Discovery Call:www.villagefamilylawyers.com.au/booking-request Call: 1300 413 997 Property Settlement:www.villagefamilylawyers.com.au/property-settlement/

    How Is Property Divided After Separation in Australia?
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Divorce, Parenting & Property – Legal Insights from Village Family Lawyers is your go-to source for calm, clear guidance on separation, parenting arrangements, financial settlements, mediation, and more. Hosted by Lauren Wilson, Founder and Director of Village Family Lawyers, each episode unpacks real questions faced by families during major life transitions — with compassion, legal expertise, and a focus on child and family wellbeing. Whether you’re exploring mediation, preparing for court, or trying to understand your rights, this podcast offers practical insights to help you move forward

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