A commonly asked question for family law practitioners is when can a party apply for a divorce. Often I get phone calls from clients who have been separated from their partners for a couple of weeks and they ring and say they want a divorce straight away. However, parties must be separated for 12 months before either one of the parties can apply to the Court for a divorce. If you get back together for a period of up to 3 months before the 12 months is up then you must begin a new separation date.

Once 12 months of separation has occurred, you can apply to the Federal Magistrates Court of Australia (Family Court Jurisdiction) to file for your divorce. Once you have filed your Application it then needs to be served on your spouse and he or she will need to sign those documents, otherwise you can make a joint application and share the cost. It is also important to know that you do not have to attend Court to hear your divorce application if you have no children. If there are children however, you or your legal representative will need to attend Court.

The divorce hearing is quite simple and is usually over quite quickly. The main objective that the Court will need to be satisfied with is that arrangements have been made for the children from the marriage.

At your divorce hearing the Court will grant you a decree nisi and a month and one day after that hearing you will receive a decree absolute which means your divorce is final, and therefore you can if you choose to get married again. It is vital to note that you have a further 12 months from the date of your decree absolute to apply for a property settlement.