Consent Orders
Recording your agreement
Consent Orders
Protect your future with legally binding court orders
Congratulations, the hard part’s done. You’ve reached an agreement with your ex-partner about your parenting and property arrangements. But there is one more thing – it’s always possible for your ex-partner to apply to the Court for something utterly different to what you originally agreed.
An informal agreement is just that – informal, not necessarily final and not legally binding. If you want certainty and peace of mind, you’ll need a consent order.
What is a Consent Order?
A consent order is a legally binding document that is approved and is enforceable by the family court. The good news is, you don’t need to go to Court to get a consent order. If you have reached an agreement about your finances, the judge must be satisfied that your agreement is fair. If you have reached a parenting agreement, the judge must be satisfied that the order sought is in the child’s best interest.
What are the risks of not having a Consent Order?
If you don’t have a consent order, you risk a lot, financially and emotionally. Some of the reasons include:
- Change of mind: If you don’t have a consent order, you run the risk that your ex-partner will change their mind. You’ve negotiated hard for an agreement, and you’ll be back to square one. More time, more money, more stress.
- Future Claims: You leave yourself open to financial claims even though you have reached an agreement- possibly years after.
- Stamp Duty: If your agreement includes a transfer of the home to either of you, stamp duty is payable unless you have a consent order. By having a consent order, you save thousands of dollars.
- Superannuation Split: If your agreement includes a split of a superfund, the Trustee of the superfund will need a consent order. With a consent order, the Trustee can implement the terms agreed – without one, it can’t.
- Enforceability: A consent order is enforceable. If your ex-partner is in breach of a term, you can ask the Court to enforce its terms. For example, if you have agreed to sell the house and your ex-partner subsequently refuses.
How do I get a Consent Order?
To get a formal agreement the Court officially recognises, you must apply for a Consent Order.
Your application must accompany a set of consent orders and any other accompanying document specific to your matter.
Do I need a lawyer to draft my Consent Order?
No, you don’t, and you can do this yourself but drafting a consent order is not an easy task. You need to look at the court’s, DIY Consent Order Kit to see why.
Drafting consent orders need to be clear, detailed and include default provisions. i.e. details of what will happen if a specific term cannot be implemented as initially envisaged. For example, if you agree that the house sells within 56 days, but the house doesn’t sell in that time frame, what happens?
We assist clients who have attempted to draft their consent orders to save money, and we understand that. Unfortunately, however, this is a false economy.
The family court often rejects Applications for a Consent Order because of a lack of clarity, missing information, failing to provide a trustee of a superfund with procedural fairness, failing to have adequate default provisions and drafting errors. When using our service – you can avoid all of that.
Our Service
By using our consent order documentation service:
- We review your existing proposals and ideas
- We identify what outcomes you seek and special circumstances that your consent order should provide
- We reduce the confusion and increase the certainty about your parenting and property matter legally and practically
- We give you best practice suggestions to ensure the workability and longevity of your consent orders
- No need for you to battle with the legal technicalities, the preparation or the process.
- We reduce the delay getting your application to Court, therefore reducing the risk that your ex-partner changes their mind.
- You gain confidence that your documentation is legally compliant.
- Outside of consultation, we will draft a complete, customised set of consent orders ready for signing and filing with the family court.
Arora Legal offers a range of fixed-fee legal and mediation services. To find out how we can help you, BOOK your free 15-minute consult today or call 07 3180 0129 and speak to our specialist lawyer. By contacting us today, you can take the first step towards resolving your family law issue and moving on to a brighter future.
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