How to Divorce as Quickly as Possible in Queensland, Australia
If your marriage has become irretrievably broken and you live in Queensland, you can get a divorce quicker than you think. You can get divorced and move on with your life in three to four months. While a normal divorce has specific steps and a year or more timeline to obtain a divorce, you do have another option.
You've already determined that your marriage has to end and end quickly. You may think of it as tearing off a band-aid fast instead of slow to minimise the pain. The good news there are law firms and legal services that can help you handle this efficiently, professionally, and quickly.
After your final hearing in three to four months, each of you gets a copy of the divorce decree order. Getting divorced quickly is sometimes the best option when you know the marriage has ended and exists in name only. Read on to discover more about how to get a divorce quickly and efficiently in Queensland.
The informational guide below gives you details about how long a divorce take that's moved quickly through the system as well as your divorce proceedings.
The fastest way to get a divorce and the one that's most efficient is filing a joint application. Filing a joint application means you don't have to bother with the official and legal serving divorce papers process. Having both parties’ signatures on the joint application indicates you are both in agreement and applying together.
If the process is handled efficiently, it generally takes about three months from the first date of filing your application for divorce with the court, until the divorce is granted at a hearing and draft orders are made. One month and a day after the date of your divorce hearing your divorce is granted, the orders will be made final, and you will each receive a copy.
Your divorce can be completed within the three-four month timeline if you carry out the below steps. Realistically speaking, other than filing for your divorce jointly and following the legal procedural steps properly and in a timely manner, there isn't a faster way to get a divorce in Queensland.
If you've taken your first step in filing for a fast divorce, you started the process with a joint divorce application. Once you have that in hand, you want to make sure you submit it online through the Commonwealth Courts Portal. If you're submitting the divorce forms manually, you must submit at least three copies with one original and two copies of the completed application.
After that process is complete, you must file all the relevant documents with the Federal Circuit Court of Australia. The Federal Circuit Court of Australia has a filing fee and that fee must be paid at the time of your submission. The Federal Circuit Court will set a hearing date for your application to go before a deputy registrar of the court.
It's better to have a divorce lawyer during this phase because the court has the power to decrease and reduce your wait time and a divorce lawyer knows what paperwork and documents are needed to make that happen. The time frame is usually about eight weeks if you live in Australia. You will have to prove through a divorce lawyer or on your own that you've been legally separated for at least twelve months and one day when your hearing date arrives.
Your separation of twelve months can legally be met even if you got back together and separated again during that period. As long as you lived apart for a total of twelve months, it is counted as a 12-month and one-day separation. You also have to meet three criteria before you can begin the divorce process. Those criteria are:
Your marriage cannot be saved and has broken down irreversibly
You meet the twelve-month and one-day separation criteria
If you have children, you both have agreed or provisions have been made for their welfare
If children are involved, you should always seek a solicitor’s help because the divorce process and timeline can change due to the children involved and the protection of their welfare.
Your divorce is final one month and one day after the hearing mentioned above. After one month and one day, the court forwards the divorce decree to the parties.
If the parties have a divorce lawyer, the court will forward the divorce decree to the lawyers. You should never misplace or lose this very important document as it can be used or needed at a future time especially regarding taxes, or if you choose to marry again. If during the fast divorce process, both parties had assets or property that needed to be distributed, that will be dealt with separately by the court.
Property distribution between two parties seeking a divorce can be difficult sometimes because what's fair to one party in the divorce may not seem fair to the other party. Because every divorce situation is unique, each property settlement is too. That means the applicable law is applied differently from case to case.
There's no doubt you have more questions than answers regarding how long a divorce takes and if you can get one quickly. But if you reach out to Koolik & Associates, they have the answers you seek. No one wants to go through a divorce that's difficult, confusing and adds more anxiety to an already stressful situation.
There is a way you can have a future that gives you the best possible resolution for difficult problems, with a team that cares about making your divorce process as fast and as stress-free as possible. When you need a fast divorce, property settlement, child custody resolutions, mediation, or any other family law issue resolved, Koolik & Associates will help provide legal options that help you take the next step towards your future.
Please note the content of this post is information only and not legal advice. If you require legal advice it is best to contact one of our lawyers who can review your particular circumstances and then provide tailored advice according to your needs.
We provide legal services to clients all over Queensland as well as interstate. Many of our services, such as conveyancing, will preparation, and estate management can be accessed remotely via phone, email and registered post where required.
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