Often in Family Law Matters involving children the Court will make an Order for the parties to attend upon a Family Consultant to obtain a Family Report.
The Family Consultant is often a Psychologist or Social Worker with experience in family and children’s issues.
The parties may discuss and reach an agreement about who should be appointed as the Family Consultant. However, sometimes, the Court will nominate the Family Consultant and the parties will have no choice.
The Family Consultants and Mediation Services has a list of qualified Family Consultants on their website. Follow this link for more information: http://www.fcms.net.au/mediation-services.html
In most cases (unless the parties are entitled to Legal Aid) the parties will need to contribute towards the cost of the Family Consultant. The cost of the Family Consultant will depend on the person appointed.
The Family Consultant will make an appointment to interview the parties, the children and any other significant persons (such as grandparents). There may be one interview or more, depending on the nature of the dispute.
Normally, the Family Consultant will meet with the parties individually so that the Family Consultant can get each party’s view without the other person present. The Family Consultant will normally meet with any children of the relationship. Initially, this may be without the parents present but may later involve the Family Consultant viewing the interaction between the children and each parent.
If the Court ordered that you are to attend upon the Family Consultant then you must attend your appointment.
A Family Report is a report written by a Family Consultant which provides an assessment of the issues in dispute in a case. It can also provide a recommendation as to what should occur in the future. Often in cases before a Court, the Family Report will be the first piece of independent evidence.
In preparing the family report, the family consultant may consider the family’s circumstances, explore the children’s wishes, explore whether there is any family violence or abuse, consider any issues raised by either party, explore arrangements that will best meet the children’s needs, consider the interactions during the interview and anything else said or done during the interview process.
When writing the family report, the Family Consultant must focus on the best interests of the children. It should be noted that the Family Consultant will consider everything you tell them during the interview and can report anything you say in the Family Report. Nothing is kept confidential. The Family Report will be provided by the Family Consultant to the Court and the Court can use the Family Report to assist it in making a decision.
The Family Report is only one piece of evidence that the Court considers in making a decision. It must also consider all the other evidence before it.
Yes, a copy of the report is provided to all parties. A copy is also provided to the Court.