What is a Parenting Plan?

A Parenting Plan is a parenting agreement that:

• Is written;
• Is made by the parents of a child;
• Is signed by the parents of the child;
• Is dated; and
• Deals with any one or more of the following things:

• who a child lives with
• the time a child spends with the other parent, relatives or another person
• the allocation of “parental responsibility” for a child
• if two or more persons are to share parental responsibility for a child, the way those persons consult with one another about decisions to be made for the child
• the (frequency and type of) communication a child is to have with other parent, relatives or another person
• the financial support of a child
• how disputes about the terms of the Parenting Plan are resolved
• what process will be used to change the Parenting Plan to take account of the changing needs or circumstances of either the Child or the parties to the Parenting Plan
• any aspect of the care, welfare of development of the Child or
• any other aspect of parental responsibility for a Child.

A Parenting Plan is not binding or enforceable unless it is made after 1 July 2006 and amends a previous Court Order.

If the Parenting Plan is not binding or enforceable, the Court will however consider the contents of the Parenting Plan.

An agreement cannot be a Parenting Plan unless it is made free from any threat, duress or coercion.

It was only until 2003 that a Parenting Plan could be registered with the Court.

A Parenting Plan registered prior to the 2003 changes to the law, remains in force until it is revoked by agreement in writing by the parties or by Court Order.

If you have any queries on Family Law or Mediation please don’t hesitate to contact us on 03 9620 0088 or email info@resolveconflict.com.au

This article was first published on diyfamilylawaustralia.com