Following the rules
On this page:
What are the court rules and procedures?
You must follow court rules if you go to court, whether you or another person applies. Each court has its own set of rules and procedures. There are rules about important steps, such as filing, serving, disclosure and giving evidence, and many have time limits.
'Filing' means to give documents to the court. Court fees apply for filing forms - depending on your financial situation you may be excused from paying these. Soon there will be changes to where and how court documents are to be filed.
'Serving' means to have legal documents given (or mailed) to the other person or people involved in your case. There are special rules about serving. In some cases, you are not able to serve the other person yourself. There are forms that must be filled out to prove that the other person has been served. The Family Law Court's website has information on serving or you can ask at the court registry or get legal advice.
'Disclosure' means you must give to the court and the others involved in the dispute all the information you have that is related to your case. This applies even if the information you give helps the other person's case, or if the information they give helps yours. If you have questions about whether information should be disclosed you can get legal advice.
'Giving evidence' in court is when you may get to talk about the issues in dispute, so the judge can hear from each person and make a decision. It can also refer to providing other information to the court.
There are strict rules about admitting (allowing in) evidence. Some of these rules will not apply in children's cases unless the court decides they should.
If you need more information on court procedures, or if you are representing yourself, get legal advice from a lawyer experienced in family law.
The court websites also provide some information on court procedures. Legal Aid Queensland may be able to give you information on how to represent yourself in court.
In all family law court cases you must follow pre-action procedures.
Pre-action procedures
These are rules that must be followed before you apply to court. The rules are different, depending on the type of dispute. With some exceptions, this means that you should participate in some form of family dispute resolution.
Before applying for parenting orders in either of the family law courts you must participate in some kind of dispute resolution, although there are exceptions to this rule.
Acknowledgement - Prepared using fact sheets which are copyright to the Commonwealth of Australia and National Legal Aid.