Jonson Leo

Separation forces parents to make significant decisions about their children at the very moment when everything else in their lives feels uncertain. There is no easy path through it, but there is a better path and a worse one. Getting clear legal advice early and approaching the process with a well-considered position makes an enormous difference to where things land.

We help parents in Chadstone work through custody matters from the earliest stages of separation through to formalised arrangements and, where necessary, court proceedings. Whatever your situation involves, we will give you an honest assessment of your position and a practical strategy for achieving the best outcome available to you.

Starting on the right footing

One of the things we consistently see is that the informal arrangements put in place in the weeks immediately after a separation tend to take on a life of their own. Courts and mediators often treat what has been happening in practice as a baseline. If those early arrangements do not reflect what is actually in the children’s best interests, correcting them later requires significantly more effort.

Getting proper advice before patterns are established, and before either party has committed to a position they will feel they need to defend, puts both parents in a much better position to reach an arrangement that genuinely works.

What needs to be worked out

Child custody is a collection of connected decisions rather than a single question. The matters that need to be resolved for Chadstone families typically include:

• How the children’s time is divided between two households across the fortnight
• Who the children spend school holidays and significant occasions with
• Schooling decisions, particularly where the separation means moving between areas
• How handovers are managed when the relationship between parents is strained
• Who holds authority over medical, educational and other important decisions
• What happens when one parent wants to make a change the other does not agree with

Getting these matters documented in a way that is specific enough to be followed and flexible enough to accommodate the children’s changing needs as they grow is something we do well.

The legal standard the court applies

Australian family law applies a single test to every parenting matter: what is in the best interests of this child? Not what is fair to each parent. Not what each parent contributed to the relationship. What genuinely serves the child.

The court considers the strength and quality of each parent’s relationship with the child, each parent’s practical capacity to provide care, any safety concerns, and each parent’s demonstrated willingness to support the child’s relationship with the other parent. A parent who approaches the process with the child’s needs clearly at the front of their proposals consistently achieves better results than one focused on their own entitlements.

When the other parent is making things difficult

Some custody matters involve a former partner who will not engage reasonably, who makes allegations that are exaggerated or untrue, or who is using access to the children as leverage in a broader dispute. These situations require a firm and experienced response.

We handle contested parenting matters for Chadstone clients with the same thoroughness we bring to everything else. We know how to document what matters, how to present our client’s position clearly, and how to push back effectively when the other side is being unreasonable.

Speak with a child custody lawyer in Chadstone

A conversation with us costs nothing and gives you a clear starting point. We listen carefully, ask the right questions, and give you advice you can actually use.

Call us on 03 9793 7888 to book a free initial consultation.