Consent orders & BFAs:
make the deal stick.

What are consent orders?

Consent orders are your agreement, approved by the court, with the same legal force as orders made after a trial — and nobody has to attend a hearing. They can cover parenting arrangements, property division, superannuation splits, or all of them. You file the application. A registrar checks the parenting terms serve the children's best interests and the property terms are fair. Once approved, the orders are enforceable. For most separated fathers with a workable agreement, this is the cleanest, most cost-effective way to lock it in.

What's a binding financial agreement, and when is it better?

A BFA is a private contract — no court approval — that can be made before, during, or after a relationship. Its strengths are privacy and flexibility: terms a court might not approve, arrangements made before you move in together (the "prenup"), or settlements both parties want kept entirely out of the court system. The trade-off is fragility. A BFA is only binding if strict requirements are met — including genuinely independent legal advice for both parties. Poorly drafted ones get set aside. For most post-separation settlements, consent orders are the right choice. BFAs suit situations where timing or privacy demands it. We'll tell you straight which fits your facts.

I'm re-partnering. Should I think about this before moving in?

Yes — especially if you came out of the last settlement with assets to protect. A de facto relationship can give your new partner property claims after as little as two years — or sooner if you have a child together. A BFA made before or early in the relationship can quarantine what you've rebuilt — the house, the super, the business — while still being fair to your partner. Fathers rarely want to raise this conversation; almost every father we've helped through a second settlement wishes he had.

Why can't we just write something up ourselves?

Because the document's power comes entirely from how it's made. A homemade agreement is evidence of intentions, nothing more. Consent orders are only enforceable because a registrar approved them; a BFA is only binding because the formalities — including certified independent legal advice — were strictly met. There's also a protective angle: independent advice means someone whose only job is your interests reads the deal before you sign it. We regularly stop fathers from signing agreements that looked fine and weren't.