De
Facto Relationships
And
Property
Queensland has
caught up with most other Australian States by introducing a law (The Property
Law Amendment Act 1999) which commenced on the 19th December 1999 to deal with
unwedded partners, including same sex.
The law virtually
mirrors the Family Law Act 1975 in that it deals with existing property and
takes into account contributions to that property of a financial and non-financial
nature, and to the family unit, and also financial resources, eg superannuation,
life assurance etc. Parties can agree to the division of the relevant property
or one of the State Courts can order the division where agreement is not reached.
But there are some
provisions unique to this new law-
- A defacto relationship
is where an unwed couple live together on a genuine domestic basis in a relationship
based on intimacy, trust and personal commitment to each other.
- The Court can
order a division of property only if the couple have cohabited for at least
2 years or there is a child under 18 years old or there would be a serious
injustice to a partner who had made substantial contributions.
- Parties can
make a Cohabitation Agreement and/or a Separation Agreement both of which
may deal with financial matters and can also make a Recognised Agreement which
is a Cohabitation/Separation Agreement that does contain a statement of all
significant property, financial resources and liabilities of each party. A
Court is required not to make any Order inconsistent with the financial matters
contained in a Recognised Agreement.
- On Application,
the Supreme and District Courts may make Declarations as to whether defacto
relationships exist or not. Such Declarations can then be used in all Courts
for all purposes. All State Courts, ie including the Magistrates Court can
deal with financial matters up to their respective monetary limits.
- But like the
Family Court of Australia, costs must be met by each party save when some
justification can be advanced for a Costs Order against the other.
So there it is!
Clear enough? Not at all.
As always, see
a Solicitor first.