Parenting & Child Custody Lawyers Melbourne
We support parents through custody arrangements, parenting plans, and court orders with your child’s best interests at the centre.
Child Custody Lawyers in Melbourne
We’ll help you put your kids first
A relationship breakdown is already difficult. Not only are you working through the upset of the end of the relationship, but you’re also having to consider new living arrangements and how to divide your assets and property. And on top of this, if you have children, you also need to be thinking about child custody and looking after the best interests of your children. To help you through these difficult times, you need a family lawyer in Melbourne that is well versed in parenting and children matters. This is especially critical if both parents cannot seem to arrive at a single agreement. Where family violence is a concern, intervention orders may also be needed.
That’s where we come in. We are family lawyers experienced in child custody with plenty of experience in handling all types of child custody matters. Our Melbourne child custody lawyers can help you to understand what is reasonable under the law and what your choices are for you and your children. Through our honest communication, practical support, and expert family law advice we can help you work towards the best possible arrangement for your children. Learn More >>
What you can expect from our Melbourne Child Custody Lawyers
When you engage us as your child custody lawyers, we’ll aim to:
- Understand your circumstances and what matters to you
- Prioritise your children’s needs
- Anticipate any issues or concerns
- Give practical advice and strategies
- Communicate with you regularly and clearly
Our professional duties are crucial to ensuring the right arrangements for you and your children. We will honour those duties by:
- Respecting your confidentiality
- Acting in your best interests
- Representing you with skill and expertise
- Acting with honesty and integrity
- Giving you written information about our costs
Free first consultation For Your Child Custody Matters
Finding the right family lawyer is a personal choice. Just because your friend recommended a lawyer doesn’t mean they’re a good fit for you. It may not be anything you can pinpoint; perhaps it’s simply a lack of connection.Why?
Because not all personalities are compatible. Not everyone gets along.
Yet, you need to trust your lawyer completely. You need to feel like they’re listening to you and that they’ve understood your circumstances and concerns. You want them to focus on what’s important to you and be honest about what’s achievable. And their advice should be practical and considered.
For these reasons, we offer a no-obligation, free first consultation to all new clients. It’s an opportunity to meet your lawyer and assess whether they’re a good fit for you before making a financial commitment.
Want to know more?
Experienced Child Custody Lawyers in Melbourne
With a close-knit team of expert lawyers and outstanding support staff, we deliver experienced child custody legal services to our clients in Melbourne and Victoria. We know that our services are most effective when you feel:
- Supported
- Believed
- Empowered
- Heard
- Valued
- Informed
So, we strive to ensure you experience all these things with every communication. That’s why we’re committed to being trusted child custody lawyers across Melbourne and Victoria. Even better, we have lawyers fluent in Arabic, Mandarin, Lebanese, Vietnamese, and Spanish. This is just one example of our commitment to excellent communication.
Our Child Custody Law Services
Typically, our services include:
Exploring whether parenting arrangements can be agreed and formalised through consent orders
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600+
5 Star Reviews and Thousands of Lives Transformed
At Unified Lawyers, results matter because they matter to you. We’ve helped more than 8000+ clients across Australia resolve their family law matters with care and expertise.
Andrew Benz
Jessica O’Brien handled my matter which involved drawing up a formal agreement for the division of property post-separation which was filed with the courts. This was done in a highly efficient, very professional and low stress way, minimising costs and time. Jessica is a very kind, warm and empathetic person who genuinely cares. She listens to you carefully and is keen to know what outcomes you wish to achieve and how you want to go about things, consulting with you throughout the whole process. Separation and divorce are invariably highly stressful life events and the way that Jessica handled everything really reduced this stress. Thank you once again, Jessica.
Shaymaa El Kafrawy
I cannot recommend Mark Youssef and the team at Unified Lawyers highly enough. Going through family law proceedings was one of the most difficult experiences of my life, but having Mark represent me made an enormous difference. Before working with him, I had already been represented by two other lawyers, and the level of support, organisation, strategy, and dedication I received from Mark was truly on another level. From day one, I felt supported and protected. Mark and his team were always responsive, professional, and prepared. No matter how stressful the situation became, I always knew my matter was being handled with care, attention, and genuine commitment. What impressed me most about Mark was not only his strong legal knowledge and courtroom presence, but also how deeply invested he was in achieving the best possible outcome. He is incredibly strategic, detail-oriented, and calm under pressure. Throughout the case, I felt like I had a whole team fighting for me every step of the way.
Felicia Richards
I can’t thank Santino enough for his support, professionalism, and guidance throughout our matter. His level of knowledge, compassion, and dedication has been unmatched. He has a rare ability to balance exceptional legal expertise with genuine care and understanding, making an incredibly difficult process feel far more manageable. I always felt supported, informed, and confident knowing Santino was in my corner. I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend him to anyone seeking a compassionate, dedicated, and highly skilled lawyer.
Jimmy Vu
I cannot thank Eliza Harley enough for helping me through my family law matter. She was very professional, compassionate and took the time to explain the processes clearly. Her expertise helped me navigate a challenging situation with confidence. I would highly recommend her for anyone seeking any legal assistance regarding family law.
Georgina
I highly recommend Unified Lawyers and especially Jessica Adamovich. She handled our family law matter with the utmost professionalism and was always willing to listen to our concerns and expectations. Thankfully due to her professionalism we were able to achieve the outcome we had hoped for
Ellen Cook
I am beyond thankful for Andrew Morrison and his team at Unified Lawyers. From the first phone call, Andrew listened to me and provided helpful information about my separation. The initial appointment helped me unpack my options and empowered me to know what to do next. Andrew was quick to reply to emails and was there to help. He successfully helped me seperate well from my ex without having to go to court and I can not thank him enough for this. I highly recommend Andrew Morrison!
Andrew Benz
Jessica O’Brien handled my matter which involved drawing up a formal agreement for the division of property post-separation which was filed with the courts. This was done in a highly efficient, very professional and low stress way, minimising costs and time. Jessica is a very kind, warm and empathetic person who genuinely cares. She listens to you carefully and is keen to know what outcomes you wish to achieve and how you want to go about things, consulting with you throughout the whole process. Separation and divorce are invariably highly stressful life events and the way that Jessica handled everything really reduced this stress. Thank you once again, Jessica.
Shaymaa El Kafrawy
I cannot recommend Mark Youssef and the team at Unified Lawyers highly enough. Going through family law proceedings was one of the most difficult experiences of my life, but having Mark represent me made an enormous difference. Before working with him, I had already been represented by two other lawyers, and the level of support, organisation, strategy, and dedication I received from Mark was truly on another level. From day one, I felt supported and protected. Mark and his team were always responsive, professional, and prepared. No matter how stressful the situation became, I always knew my matter was being handled with care, attention, and genuine commitment. What impressed me most about Mark was not only his strong legal knowledge and courtroom presence, but also how deeply invested he was in achieving the best possible outcome. He is incredibly strategic, detail-oriented, and calm under pressure. Throughout the case, I felt like I had a whole team fighting for me every step of the way.
Felicia Richards
I can’t thank Santino enough for his support, professionalism, and guidance throughout our matter. His level of knowledge, compassion, and dedication has been unmatched. He has a rare ability to balance exceptional legal expertise with genuine care and understanding, making an incredibly difficult process feel far more manageable. I always felt supported, informed, and confident knowing Santino was in my corner. I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend him to anyone seeking a compassionate, dedicated, and highly skilled lawyer.
Jimmy Vu
I cannot thank Eliza Harley enough for helping me through my family law matter. She was very professional, compassionate and took the time to explain the processes clearly. Her expertise helped me navigate a challenging situation with confidence. I would highly recommend her for anyone seeking any legal assistance regarding family law.
Georgina
I highly recommend Unified Lawyers and especially Jessica Adamovich. She handled our family law matter with the utmost professionalism and was always willing to listen to our concerns and expectations. Thankfully due to her professionalism we were able to achieve the outcome we had hoped for
Ellen Cook
I am beyond thankful for Andrew Morrison and his team at Unified Lawyers. From the first phone call, Andrew listened to me and provided helpful information about my separation. The initial appointment helped me unpack my options and empowered me to know what to do next. Andrew was quick to reply to emails and was there to help. He successfully helped me seperate well from my ex without having to go to court and I can not thank him enough for this. I highly recommend Andrew Morrison!
Affordable child custody lawyers in Melbourne
Parenting decisions significantly impact your children, so it’s important to find legal assistance to help make arrangements that can work in your circumstances. When managed with skill, legal assistance can help improve your kids’ wellbeing and make your family’s future feel more certain. Of course, not all lawyers will be the right fit, so you must find a family lawyer with expertise in child custody. However, if money is tight, we understand that instructing a lawyer can be an enormous financial commitment.
There are some key questions to consider when it comes to legal expenses. For example, what exactly will be billed? What is your lawyer’s hourly rate? Can your lawyer estimate their legal fees? To help you feel more confident about engaging our services, we use billing methods different from other law firms. For example, we won’t bill you for:
- Short phone calls
- Faxes
- Printing
- Postage
We’ve created our billing system to fit each matter, and for further flexibility, we’ve designed various billing models:
1
Event billing
We bill you whenever there’s a specific event, which we identify in our costs agreement with you. You’ll have upfront knowledge of our fees and the events or milestones that will prompt us to send you a bill.
2
Time interval billing
We calculate costs on time spent, which is usually an hourly rate. You’ll have advance notice of our hourly rates, and we will give you a cost estimate.
3
Fixed-rate fees
We’ll give you an up-front quote before we start working on a task, and we’ll charge that amount regardless of the amount of time it takes us to complete the work.
Frequently Asked Questions About Child Custody Melbourne
What are the differences between child custody, contact, and parenting arrangements?
Child custody and contact are terms that were used in the past. They described how children would divide their time between their parents who had separated or divorced, usually referring to living and visiting arrangements. Now, the term parenting arrangements is used. It describes children’s living and visiting arrangements and agreements.
However, on this page, we continue to use the term child custody because we have found that most people generally understand it.
To learn more, see our information about access to children and parenting arrangements.
What is the meaning of "the best interests of the child?"
In any family law matters concerning children, the law requires that the child’s best interests are the paramount consideration. In practice, this means parents are encouraged to focus on their children’s safety and wellbeing rather than on the issues that led to the breakdown of their relationship.
Important update: Since 6 May 2024, the Family Law Amendment Act 2023 changed how the best interests of a child are determined. The previous two-part “primary considerations” test (which weighed the benefit of a meaningful relationship with both parents against the need to protect the child from harm) has been removed. There is now a single list of best-interests factors, and the presumption of “equal shared parental responsibility” has also been repealed.
Under the current law, when working out what is in a child’s best interests, a court must consider factors including:
- What arrangements would best promote the safety of the child and the people who care for them (including safety from family violence, abuse, neglect or other harm)
- Any views expressed by the child
- The developmental, psychological, emotional and cultural needs of the child
- The capacity of each person who has or seeks parental responsibility to provide for those needs
- The benefit to the child of being able to have a relationship with their parents and other significant people, where it is safe to do so
- Anything else relevant to the particular circumstances of the child
Where there is any history of family violence, abuse or neglect, the court must also take that into account. Safety is the law’s overriding priority.
Current as at 16 June 2026. This is general information only and is not legal advice.
What are the other basic principles behind child custody (parenting) arrangements?
As a starting point, Australian family law says that there are three basic principles when making parenting arrangements:
1.Decisions must be made in the child’s best interests (the previous presumption of equal shared parental responsibility was removed by the 2024 reforms).
2.The parents should try and make parenting arrangements without going to court
3.The parents are both responsible for the child until the child is 18 years old
However, many factors may influence whether these principles can be applied in particular circumstances, for example, the child’s safety, whether there’s family violence and what’s in the child’s best interests.
What is a parenting plan?
A parenting plan is a written agreement you make with your former partner about parenting arrangements for your children. It’s up to you and your former partner to decide what should be included, for example:
· Where the children will live
· How the children will divide their time
· Where they will go to school
· Who will pay for what
· Arrangements for occasions such as birthdays
· Medical care
The parenting plan isn’t legally enforceable unless you ask a court to make orders based on the plan (consent orders). However, it’s a valuable record of your agreement with the other parent.
For more information about parenting plans, see our article on Access to Children and Parenting Agreements.
What is considered when making child custody (parenting) arrangements?
When making parenting arrangements, what is taken into account will depend on your circumstances, for example:
· Location of your children’s school
· Your children’s activities, including out-of-school activities
· Care requirements
· Medical treatment requirements
· How you share the financial responsibility with the other parent
· How you communicate with the other parent
· The children’s wishes (if they are older)
Get in touch to learn more about parenting arrangements.
How will a child custody dispute affect me?
If you and your former partner can’t agree on parenting arrangements, you may need to apply to a court to make parenting orders. If there’s a dispute about what orders the court should make, there will be a hearing (known as a trial) at which both parties can provide evidence. Evidence can include testimony from witnesses and various documents (including expert reports, emails, photographs, text messages and social media activity).
If you’re thinking about taking legal action, we recommend that you consider the following:
- It takes a long time for a custody issue to get to trial. In some cases, it can take years. While waiting for your trial date, the court may hold several minor hearings to check progress. If you have lawyers, they usually attend these hearings on your behalf. Your lawyers will also put much time and effort into preparing for the trial. It means that custody cases can be expensive – often costing each party tens of thousands of dollars in legal fees – so you need to consider the time and financial cost of going to trial
- When you start a child custody legal action, you may have to produce all documents or other evidence relevant to your case. Also, you may be required to answer questions or give reasons for your decisions, even if they don’t help your case
- Court cases are often stressful, which can impact you and your children
- Taking legal action means the court is asked to decide what happens to your children. You won’t have control over the decision, and in most cases, you will have to accept the outcome
- Depending on the ages of your children, you may have to deal with the other parent for many more years. Maintaining a good long-term relationship is often easier if you can reach an agreement without going to court
For more information, see our Australian Parenting Orders Guide.
Our Melbourne Office
Our family lawyers in Melbourne are available to meet at our conveniently located Melbourne CBD office, situated near the corner of Little Bourke Street and Queen Street, just moments from the Supreme Court of Victoria and Bourke Street Mall. The office is easily accessible by tram via Bourke Street or Elizabeth Street, and is within walking distance of Southern Cross Station, making it a convenient location for clients travelling from across Melbourne.
In addition to our Melbourne CBD office, our family lawyers can also meet with clients in Geelong, ensuring that families across Victoria have access to our experienced legal team.
Please contact us today to arrange a consultation with one of our specialised family lawyers in our Melbourne or Geelong offices.