Obligations when conducting family dispute resolution

Under the FDR Regulations, you must assess the people involved in the dispute to determine whether FDR is appropriate before you provide FDR sessions.

Before starting an FDR session, you must be satisfied that your assessment has considered whether a person’s ability to negotiate freely in the dispute is affected by the following factors as outlined in the FDR Regulations:

• a history of violence (if any) among the people involved in the dispute

• the likely safety of the people involved

• the equality of bargaining power among the people involved in the dispute, which includes an imbalance in knowledge of relevant financial arrangements

• if the dispute involves children, the risk that a child may suffer child abuse

• the emotional, psychological and physical health of the people involved

• whether or not any party to the dispute might be unduly biased or influenced by a person (whether or not the person is a party to the dispute)

• any other matter that the FDR practitioner considers would have a material impact on the ability of the parties to the dispute to negotiate freely.

If, after considering these matters, you are not satisfied that FDR is appropriate, you must not provide FDR.

There are several screening tools available to help you assess whether FDR is suitable for the parties.

Common tools include DOORS and MARAM. You may choose to use your own tool.

For more information about screening tools, visit Screening and assessment in family dispute resolution.

Part way through the FDR process, you may decide that it is no longer appropriate to continue FDR. If this happens, you should stop providing FDR. You can then issue a section 60I certificate stating the person attended FDR but you decided it was not appropriate to continue.

Some clients who have been victims of violence may feel there are benefits to participating in FDR rather than going to court. Where there has been a history of violence, and you consider that it is appropriate to conduct FDR, you must ensure that FDR is conducted in a way that is fair and provides for the safety of all involved (before, during and after the sessions).

For more information about the screening and assessment process, visit the Screening and assessment in family dispute resolution page.

In accordance with section 21 of the FDR Regulations, you must ensure that people receive information to help them understand the important elements of FDR. 

Before starting the FDR session you must let your clients know that:

• you are an accredited FDR practitioner

• it is not your role to give people legal advice (unless you are also a legal practitioner)

• communications made in FDR are generally inadmissible.

You must also give them information about:

• your confidentiality and disclosure obligations

• your obligations to report suspected child abuse as a mandatory reporter

• the fees (including any hourly rate) you charge for the FDR service

• details of the complaints mechanism they can use if they wish to complain about the FDR service.

If the matter in dispute is about children, you must also let them know that:

• they must attend FDR before applying for a court order in relation to a child, unless an exemption applies

• if they want to apply to the court for an order in relation to a child, they will need to obtain a 60I certificate from you before applying, unless an exception applies

• a court may take into account a certificate issued under subsection 60I(8) of the Family Law Act when deciding whether to make an order referring the people to FDR or to award costs against a person. 

In accordance with section 12G of the Family Law Act, you must give a married person who is considering a divorce, or considering going to court about their children or their finances, information about family counselling and FDR services available to help with reconciliation.

You do not need to give this information if you believe they already have the relevant documents or that there is no reasonable possibility of reconciliation.

Family Relationships Online or the Family Relationship Advice Line (1800 050 321) can give information about family counselling services.

Section 60J of the Family Law Act provides that a person does not need to attend FDR before filing an application to the court about a child in a number of circumstances, including where there has been family violence, child abuse or a risk of family violence or child abuse.

Where these circumstances exist, the court must be satisfied that the person filing the application has received information from a family counsellor or an FDR practitioner about services and options (including alternatives to court action) available.

Practitioners who are asked to provide this information can find relevant resources on Family Relationships Online or by contacting the Family Relationship Advice Line on 1800 050 321. 

When you provide advice concerning a child or parenting arrangements, you must inform the person that the paramount consideration must be the best interests of the child. This is also the paramount consideration of the family law court when determining parenting orders.

You must encourage the person to act in the child’s best interests by considering the best interest factors set out at subsections 60CC(2) and (3) of the Family Law Act. In substance, these are:

• the safety of the child and people who care for the child (including any history of family violence and family violence orders)

• the child’s views

• the developmental, psychological, emotional and cultural needs of the child

• the capacity of each person who will be responsible for the child to provide for the child’s developmental, psychological, emotional and cultural needs 

• the benefit to the child of having a relationship with each of their parents, and other people who are significant to them (such as grandparents and siblings), where it is safe to do so

• anything else that is relevant to the particular circumstances of the child.

If the child is an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander child, practitioners should also encourage the person to consider how any parenting arrangements will help that child to experience their Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander culture.

FDR practitioners must provide information about parenting plans when giving advice about parental responsibility. A parenting plan is a written agreement signed and dated by both parents that sets out parenting arrangements for children. A parenting plan covers the day-to-day responsibilities of each parent, the practical considerations of a child’s daily life, as well as how parents will agree and consult on major, long-term issues, such as which school a child will attend.

Unlike a section 60I certificate, there is no single way of recording a parenting plan. You could record the discussion and at the end of the session provide a copy of the parenting plan to the parties. Best practice in this instance would be for the practitioner to discuss whether a more formal follow-up record is also needed (such as on letterhead with the FDR practitioner’s registration number and signatures of the parties) to emphasise the significance of the parenting plan as a mutual (non-legal) undertaking.

Providing information about parenting plans

The type of information you are obliged to provide will depend on if you are advising people generally about arrangements for children after separation, or providing specific advice to help them make a parenting plan.

If you are advising people generally about parental responsibility following the breakdown of a relationship, you should tell them:

• that they could consider entering into a parenting plan

• about services available to help them develop a plan.

When advising people about making a parenting plan, you must tell them that their paramount consideration must be what is in the best interests of the child. Each child is different and has different needs, depending on their age and stage of development. 

You must also tell them about the matters that may be dealt with in a parenting plan, including: 

• who the child will live with

• what time the child will spend with each parent 

• what time the child will spend with other people, such as grandparents

• how parental responsibility will be allocated (whether the parties will have joint decision-making about major long-term issues)

• consultations that should occur if parents are to make joint decisions about major long-term issues (such as the school the child will attend)

• how the child will communicate with each parent or other people (such as by phone, email or letters)

• what process can be used to change the plan or resolve any disagreements about the plan 

• maintenance of a child (in limited circumstances)

• any other issue about parental responsibility or the care, welfare and development of the child.

You must also inform them:

• that the terms of the parenting plan may alter a previously made court order about the child (in exceptional circumstances the court may order that this cannot occur) 

• that it is best to include information about how people will consult and resolve disputes about the plan and the process to be used for changing the plan

• about the programs that are available to help people who experience difficulties in complying with parenting plans.

Following amendments to the parenting framework in the Family Law Amendment Act 2023, from 6 May 2024, practitioners are no longer required to advise parents to consider if equal or substantial and significant time arrangements are reasonably practicable.

You can provide all required information about parenting plans in written form such as brochures. You can download information from Family Relationships Online which can be used to meet the information provision requirements.

You can also visit the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia’s website for information.

If you draw up a parenting plan, there is no legal requirement to record your name or registration number on it.

From 10 June 2025, there will be a duty of disclosure that requires separated couples to give all relevant financial information and documents to each other and the court. The duty applies to all disputes about finances and property that arise following separation. It is an ongoing duty, which means separating couples must provide all relevant information when they are trying to resolve their property matter. The duty of disclosure applies when a party is preparing to start, or is litigating, a property or financial proceeding. The duty continues to apply until the matter is resolved.

FDR practitioners and legal practitioners who are helping people with a property dispute must provide information about the duty of disclosure (see sections 71B, 90RI and 90YJA of the Family Law Act). The practitioner must do both of the following:

• give information about the duty of disclosure, explain the circumstances in which the duty applies and the potential consequences of not complying with the duty

• encourage people to take all necessary steps to comply with the duty.

Consequences of non-compliance can be significant. The non-compliant person may be punished for contempt of court with a fine or imprisonment. The court may order costs against them or take the non‑compliance into account in the property settlement.