The Family Law Act (1975) imposes a limitation period for parties seeking orders for a property division or spouse maintenance. This applies to contested and uncontested proceedings.
Negotiation of the financial issues can commence as soon as your marriage or de facto relationship has broken down. This may be done privately between parties, or with the involvement of lawyers. Where appropriate, it is desirable for parties to come to an agreement outside of Court with the assistance of lawyers to formalise an enforceable agreement, to minimise costs and save time and money.
If you and your ex-partner were married and are divorced, you are entitled to bring an application for property adjustment or spouse maintenance at any time within 12 months after a Divorce Order taking effect. There is no legal time limit in which you must apply for a divorce following your separation, so the limitation period only commences upon the making of a divorce order.
If you and your ex-partner were in a de-facto relationship, you are entitled to file an application for property adjustment or spouse maintenance at any time within 2 years after the date of the final separation.
If proceedings are commenced “out of time”, an application can still be filed however you must seek leave or ‘permission’ from the Court to do so. Leave is not always granted to file an application out of time, so it is important that you file the necessary documents within the limitation period to ensure the Court is able to determine your matter.
If you have concerns about finalising your family law matter within the limitation period, or indeed you are ‘out of time’ in making such application, you may contact our office to speak with our team as to the next steps available to you.