Cyclists on the Road

On a daily basis, we experience cyclists on our roads. The majority of the time they present no problems, however at times, drivers can be frustrated when they need to slow down or need to deviate their path to cater for cyclists. Today I would like to consider the rights and responsibilities of cyclists. You…

Money: Do You Owe Money?

In Civil Litigation, if you owe money you are called the debtor, and the person or company that is owed money is called the creditor. Once a problem becomes apparent to a creditor, you may 1st receive a letter of demand stating how much you owe and when this needs to be paid before legal…

Debt: Examination | Garnishee

In the last article, we discussed the process of having judgement “entered”. That is, that someone owed money (creditor) has been successful in having the court make an order that the debt is owed. Frequently this occurs when there has been no response from the debtor. There are a number of remedies available to the…

Writ of Execution

Last week we spoke about some options in debt recovery. An examination was held of the debtor’s details, and we spoke about obtaining a garnishee order against wages. This week we’ll discuss other options that involve taking possession of property owned by the debtor and also paying by instalments. To take property a writ of…

Victims Compensation

Violent crime can leave emotional and physical scaring on victims. People injured from such crimes can apply for victims compensation, as well as immediate family of homicide victims, witnesses, parent or guardian of a minor victim, or if you were trying to prevent a crime, or rescuing someone from a crime. Compensation can be for…

POA: Changing your Power Of Attorney

A Power of Attorney is a legal document which gives authority to another person to sign documentation on your behalf and conduct your financial affairs. Typically, it is your spouse or partner or a close trusted person who is given the power when a trip is planned, or when other legal tasks are attended to,…

AVO (Part 1)

AVOs, as they are commonly referred to as, are Apprehended Violence Orders. There are 2 types of AVO. The APVO and the ADVO. The ADVO (D stands for domestic) is typically used with family members or partners, while the APVO (P standing for personal) is for any person not in a domestic relationship. An AVO…

AVO (Part 2)

In AVO (Part 1) it was discussed what an Apprehended Violence Order is, what they do, and who can apply for such an order. We outlined the process when an AVO is made by consent. When an AVO is applied for, it is often the case that the person against whom an Order is sought…

Marriage: Pre-nuptial Agreements

Since 2000, pre-nuptial agreements have been enforceable in Australia pursuant to the Family Law Act.  These documents are called Binding Financial Agreements Financial Agreements can be made before, during or after marriage, and cater for both property and spousal maintenance. Typically, they contain clauses which effectively mean that one party to the marriage retains a…

Separation of Powers

Biker Legislation After the death of a Hells Angel member at Kingsford Smith airport in 2009, then premier Nathan Rees introduced legislation within 10 days to declare gangs of bikies “criminal”. The first application using that legislation is currently before Court. This is a good time to be reminded of the “separation of powers” doctrine.…