Legal Definitions

ADDRESS FOR SERVICE:
The physical, postal or electronic address given by a party where documents can be served on (sent to) them.

ADJOURN:
Defer or postpone a Court event to another day.

AFFIDAVIT:
A written statement of facts (your story) by a party or witness which must be sworn or affirmed before an authorised person. An Affidavit is the main way of presenting facts relevant to a case to the Court.

APPEAL:
The process of disputing a decision of a Court.

APPLICANT:
The person who applies to a Court for Orders.

CASE:
When a person makes an Application to a Court for Orders that becomes the case.

CONSENT ORDERS:
An agreement reached between the parties, which is approved by the Court, thereby becoming a Court Order.

CONCILIATION CONFERENCE:
A Court Ordered Conference which is facilitated by a Registrar of the Court.

CONTRAVENTION:
When a Court finds a party has not acted in accordance with a Court Order, that party is in contravention of (or has breached) the Order.

COURT HEARING:
The date and time a case is scheduled to be heard the Court.

COURT ORDER:
The actions parties or a party must take to follow a decision made by the Court.

DIRECTIONS:
Steps the Court Orders parties to take to progress their case or prepare the case for trial.

DISCLOSURE:
The process of providing documents which are in the power, possession or control of one party, and relevant to the case, to the other party.

DIVORCE ORDER:
An Order made by the Court that ends a marriage.

ENFORCEMENT ORDER:
An Order made by the Court to make a party comply with a previous Order.

FAMILY CONSULTANT:
A Psychologist and/or Social Worker who specialises in child and family issues that may occur after separation. They assist disputing families and the Court.

FAMILY DISPUTE RESOLUTION:
A process whereby a Family Dispute Resolution Practitioner assists people to resolve some or all of their disputes with each other following separation.

FEDERAL CIRCUIT AND FAMILY COURT OF AUSTRALIA:
The Family Court of Australia and the Federal Circuit Court of Australia.

FAMILY LAW ACT 1975 (CTH):
The Act which covers Family Law matters in Australia.

FAMILY REPORT:
A written assessment of a family by a Family Consultant which is prepared to assist the Court to make a decision in a case about children.

FAMILY VIOLENCE:
Means violent, threatening or other behaviour by a person that coerces or controls a member of the person’s family (the family member), or causes the family member to be fearful. A child is exposed to family violence if the child sees or hears family violence or is otherwise exposed to family violence. See Section 4AB, Family Law Act 1975, for examples. Family violence may also amount to child abuse.

FILING:
The procedure of lodging a document at a Family Law Registry for placing on the Court file.

FINAL ORDER:
An Order of the Court which brings the case to a close.

INDEPENDENT CHILDREN’S LAWYER:
A lawyer appointed by the Court to represent a child’s interests in a case.

INITIATING APPLICATION:
The document used to initiate proceedings in a Court.

INTERIM ORDER:
An Order by the Court which must be followed until a further Order is made.

JUDGMENT:
A decision by the Court after all the evidence is heard.

JUDICIAL OFFICER:
A person who has been appointed to hear and decide cases, for example, a Judge.

JURISDICTION:
The authority given to a Court and its judicial officers to apply the law.

PARENTAL RESPONSIBILITY:
The responsibility of each parent to make decisions about the care, welfare and development of their children. These responsibilities may be varied by Court Order.

PARENTING PLAN:
A written, signed and dated agreement between parties setting out parenting arrangements for their children. It is not approved by or filed with the Court and therefore is not enforceable by the Court.

PARTY:
A person or legal entity, such as a corporation, involved in a Court case.

PROCEDURAL ORDER:
An Order by the Court which is of a practical nature. For example, an Order that the parties attend Family Dispute Resolution.

REGISTRAR:
A Court lawyer who has been delegated power to perform certain tasks such as granting divorces.

RESPONDENT:
A person named as a party to a case.

SERVICE:
The process of providing Court documents to a party after they have been filed, in accordance with the rules of the Court.

SUBPOENA:
A document issued by a Court, at the request of a party, requiring a person to produce documents and/or give evidence to the Court at a certain time and place.

TRANSCRIPT:
A record of the spoken evidence in a Court case. The Court does not order transcripts in all instances and does not provide transcripts to parties. If a party Orders a transcript, they will be responsible for the costs.

TRIAL:
The Final Hearing of a matter before a Judge who will consider all of the evidence presented and make Orders to finalise the matter.

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Judy Stewart

Accredited Family Law Specialist