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    A relationship breakdown is hard, but the legal process doesn’t need to be

    Relationships breakdown, families separate. Hearts often don’t break evenly. 

    There is usually significant animosity involved in a relationship breakdown, generally arising from personal behaviours and where assets and lifestyle are at stake. Add to this children’s issues, embarrassment and stress, and it’s a very challenging time for everyone. 

    There is a wealth of information available to separating parties, and other people will be very quick to give an opinion about their experience in separating, or that of their family, friends, or colleagues.

    Receiving appropriate family law advice at the early stages of a separation can assist in alleviating the stress of the situation. It can help get you amicable resolution to your parenting and property matters.

    Family law advice Wollongong
    Here are four steps to help ease some of the stress and angst that comes with a relationship breakdown:

    1. Know what support you can get. At the early stages of your separation, knowing what resources are available to assist you can alleviate significant financial stress. It may be appropriate to consider whether you are eligible for any government assistance. Making appropriate enquiries with Centrelink following your separation will confirm your eligibility.
    2. Keep records. In progressing your financial settlement, having records of your payslips, bank account statements, superannuation statements, and other documents that confirm your financial position will assist in identifying your asset pool. Including the ways that you and your former partner have contributed to and built on your asset pool.
    3. Consider short term arrangements. Negotiating ongoing care arrangements for children can be difficult at the early stages of a separation, particularly if you have moved house, or are minimising further disruption to your children. Rather than looking to long-term care arrangements, it may benefit the children, you, and your former partner, to look at short-term arrangements whilst you move through your settlement and acclimatise to the changes in your living arrangements.
    4. Advise School / Childcare. It is appropriate to advise your child’s school of your separation and to provide information on the care arrangements for your child or children, so that the school can provide any additional support services to your child that may be available, and to reduce stress and anxieties to your child by knowing who is collecting them on what days.

    Throughout this difficult time, it is important to find a family lawyer that is dedicated to supporting you and making the process slightly easier, so you can focus on the things that are important, like adjusting to a new start and creating a brighter future.

    However, there is a world of difference between a good family lawyer and a bad one. What qualities should you look for in a good family lawyer or divorce lawyer?

    A good family lawyer is:

    • Someone who cares about reassuring you
    • Experienced in the law and legal process and the range of settlement outcomes available in the many circumstances he/she has worked on in that role
    • Able to get you the best result possible for a reasonable fee
    • Very experienced in listening to you closely, comparing your factual situation to the hundreds of cases he or she has run, getting the necessary documents from you and the other party as quickly as possible, and developing a reasonable rapport with the opposing lawyer
    • Skilled at managing your expectations, and then setting out to resolve the matter competently, quickly and fairly without getting involved in the mud.

    At RMB Lawyers, we help provide you with the right legal advice and guide you every step of the way, so you can move forward with the right family law advice. We understand that every situation is unique, and people need a flexible mix of good advice, strong representation and an understanding of the emotion involved. 

    Are you suffering a relationship breakdown with the parent of your children? Have family relationship issues? Don’t know where to begin in your separation? As a specialist in family law based in Wollongong, you can contact me for a confidential conversation today. Call 1800 681 211 or email me at [email protected]