FAMILY DISPUTE RESOLUTION

What is Family Dispute Resolution (FDR)?

FDR is the legal term for services (such as mediation) that help people affected by separation or divorce to sort out family disputes. FDR can help people to agree on a range of issues relating to property, money and most importantly, their children.

Family Dispute Resolution should be attempted before you consider going to Court. It will save time, cost and stress and allow parties to agree on solutions and outcomes that suit both of them and their children. It can minimise conflict and allow everyone to move forward with their lives with the least angst as possible.

If it becomes necessary to apply to the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia for a Parenting Order, in most cases you need to have a certificate issued by a Family Dispute Resolution Practitioner. This is called a s.60I Certificate.

Where do I Start?

If you and the other party have already agreed to participate in FDR/Mediation, you can proceed to our Mediation services page to obtain more information about the Mediation process, our packages and inclusions. Once you have an agreement about the Mediator, the type of Mediation (half-day or full-day), the date for the Mediation and the sharing of the cost, you can book the Mediation via our bookings page.

If you and the other party have not discussed or agreed to participate in FDR/Mediation, or you need us to reach out to the other party to request their participation in FDR/Mediation, continue reading below for details about our FDR invite request service.

How can we help?

We have a number of Family Dispute Resolution Practitioners at Separation Solutions, all of whom can issue s.60I Certificates. Our FDR Practitioners are fully trained and accredited by the Attorney-General’s Department and in addition to this, are Family Lawyers with significant experience in Mediation and negotiation.

We offer FDR through Mediation but in addition to this, where you would like to invite another party to participate in FDR, we can send them the necessary invitation. We arrange any follow-up required to ascertain the other party’s willingness to engage in FDR and if there is no engagement, or we deem the matter unsuitable for FDR, we can issue a s.60I Certificate.

Family Dispute Resolution

The benefits of FDR.

  • Saves time, cost and stress

  • It is confidential

  • It can be arranged relatively quickly

  • The FDR Practitioner is neutral and does not take sides with either party

  • It allows the parties to have control over the outcome

  • Participants can attend with or without their lawyers

  • It minimises conflict and consequently, can assist parties to have a more cooperative co-parenting relationship after separation

The FDR process.

Step 1

Contact the other party

Attempt to seek agreement from the other party to participate in FDR/Mediation. We suggest nominating 3 possible FDRP’s/Mediator’s to the other party. If there is agreement to participate in FDR/Mediation, proceed to our bookings page to book in a half-day or full-day Mediation.

Step 2

FDR invitation request

If you have had no engagement from the other party, or you wish us to seek their participation in FDR/Mediation, request a formal “FDR Invitation Request” be sent via our online invitation request form below and pay the relevant fee.

Step 3

Invitation process

An invitation is sent by us to the other party to participate in FDR/Mediation which provides information about the FDR/Mediation process, our services and costs. It requests a response within 7 days. We will keep you updated of any response from the other party and if or when the FDR/Mediation can be booked.

Step 4

Documentation

If there is no engagement from the other party after a follow-up to the initial invitation, a s.60I Certificate can be issued.

Why choose us?

Our Family Dispute Resolution Practitioners have each worked in Family Law for over 20 years and they have training, accreditation and experience in FDR and Mediation.

At Separation Solutions, dispute resolution work is all we do and we pride ourselves on having Practitioners that have the special skillset required for this work. This includes Mediators that spent many years working at the Family Law Courts along with Accredited Specialists in family law, former barristers and Mediators recognised by the Doyle’s Guide as leaders in their field.

Pricing.

FDR Invitation Request

$660incl GST
  • 2 x Communication attempts by email/phone
  • Updates to requesting party
  • s.60I Certificate if required

If it is ultimately agreed that FDR will proceed, additional fees will be in accordance with our Mediation Packages.

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