Family Lawyers Melbourne

Our Melbourne family lawyers deliver results with integrity.

Located near Melbourne, our law firm consists of a dedicated team of Family Lawyers that collaborate with you to achieve favourable results across a range of Family Law matters.

Expert Guidance​

You can always rely on the quality and integrity of our advice, and know that we will always prioritise your best interests.

Supportive & Compassionate

Our team of family lawyers take a holistic, compassionate approach to supporting you through your family law matters.

Fair Negotiations

We firmly believe in reaching fair outcomes, using collaborative law and mediation to reach agreements wherever possible.

Our Melbourne family lawyers will support you, even in the most difficult moments.

We know that navigating family law matters isn’t easy. If you are experiencing a family or relationship breakdown, emotions and stress can take a toll.

You’d probably prefer not to deal with legal matters and lawyers during times that are already hard enough, we understand that. We focus on supporting you and your family to achieve best-case scenario outcomes, whenever possible.

You’ll find our team supportive, compassionate, and committed to achieving the most amicable and affordable solutions for you. We aim to avoid the court process wherever we can by successfully negotiating fair agreements that allow you to move forward with your life.

You Don’t Have to Go Through This Alone

How can a family lawyer help me in resolving family disputes?

Laws can be complex and sometimes near impossible to understand. Having a good family lawyer to help interpret the laws and help guide you through your family dispute will provide you with more options that give you a significant advantage.

Family lawyers will assist with negotiations on your behalf, organise mediation, use collaborative law approaches to resolve the matters and give you peace of mind knowing that you are making informed decisions that are in your best interest.

Our family lawyers work to ensure your needs and opinions are heard and that a fair outcome is reached.

Family & Relationships

Tonkin Law are family law experts. If you’re looking for quality legal advice from experienced family lawyers, contact the Tonkin Legal Group today.

Wills & Estate Planning

Everyone should consult an estate lawyer prior to writing a will. Tonkin Law are experts in wills and estate planning. Contact us today to find out more.

Property & Conveyancing

Get expert advice and support when buying property from the property and conveyancing team at Tonkin Law with our comprehensive conveyancing service

What is family law, and what areas does it cover?

Marriage & Divorce

Getting married, separating, and divorce are all times that you may need to engage family law services. These scenarios may include:

We also work with couples and families when they are buying or selling propertydrawing up wills or have received an inheritance.

A formal long-term financial plan in a relationship can create clarity and can avoid potentially costly or upsetting legal matters later on.

If you’re considering a prenuptial or postnuptial agreement (a Financial Agreement), our prenup lawyers will ensure you have proper guidance and advice.

We’ll see that all important factors are covered, including inheritances, future needs of your children, family businesses, spousal maintenance, property and existing debt arrangements.

Many significant and long-term partnerships are de facto or domestic relationships, and both have specific laws and unique considerations that apply to them.

Our team can help you to navigate any legal matters arising during a de facto or domestic relationship, as well as those that occur after a partnership ends, including financial agreements, custody matters, and family or personal violence issues.

Navigating parenting arrangements, disputes and organising child custody arrangements can be an emotionally charged experience.

Our team takes a compassionate and fair approach to negotiate outcomes that reflect your family’s best interests, aiming to avoid court whenever possible. We can assist with consent orders to formalise agreements, providing clarity and legal certainty.

Most parenting disputes can be resolved successfully with good guidance, clear communication and mediation, but we will provide excellent legal representation if there isn’t another option.

If you are negotiating child support matters or spousal maintenance, our team of family lawyers can assist you in determining a fair arrangement, which can then be drawn up into a Binding Child Support Agreement.

We can also help you to determine child support payable and your child support assessment if you are using the government child support scheme. If there are disputes over amounts owed or amounts received, we can assist you in legally addressing this.

Negotiating property and financial settlements can be complex. We can help you to achieve a fair and equitable outcome whilst minimising legal costs and avoiding court where reasonably possible, expertly guiding you through settlement.

Our property settlement lawyers can help you to fairly divide superannuation, and self-managed superannuation funds too, drawing up financial agreements after negotiations. We can also support you through the court process if a property settlement can’t be reached in mediation.

Family violence still happens all too often and has a devastating effect on everyone involved. It can take on multiple forms, including physical, sexual, emotional, psychological and financial abuse, coercion, harassment or stalking.

Our Family Violence Lawyers have extensive experience in this area and will handle your matter with sensitivity with confidentiality assured.

We can provide support in:

Going to court can be a highly stressful and drawn-out process. We seek to resolve matters out of court wherever possible, using several methods, including mediation and collaborative law.

We believe most family law disputes can be resolved without attending court. When you engage our team to work with you, we’ll inform you of a range of options to address your matters without attending court.

Children may come into contact with the court system through divorce or separation cases, instances of family violence, and involvement with the Victorian Child Protection Service’s child protection procedures.

Our committed team understands the significant influence that court proceedings and child protection actions can have on families, especially the children and youth entangled in family law issues.

International family law cases can be challenging due to the complexities and variances between laws in different jurisdictions. We have extensive experience assisting clients to resolve international matters, including divorce, child support and child custody.

Wills and estates are a critical consideration when it comes to the long-term planning of your family. Having a will in place allows you to make your wishes clear about what you want to happen in the event of you dying or being ill or incapacitated. If you have children, you can provide instructions for guardianship, care and other matters, such as inheritances. Our team can also help you execute a will, contest a will, or with any other matters related to estate planning.

If you are in a same-sex relationship or marriage, laws relevant to heterosexual relationships and marriages will apply to your relationship in Victoria. This applies to de facto relationships and marriages, and similar laws apply to domestic relationships. Parenting and custody matters are treated accordingly, as are child support and other financial agreements.

Our family lawyers can help you to navigate legal matters during your relationship or during a relationship breakdown.

What is a family lawyer?

Family lawyers provide guidance and support in areas such as divorce, separation, child custody, property settlement, domestic violence and wills & estates. They can help you understand your legal rights, protect your interests, and resolve disputes efficiently.

How do you choose the right family lawyer for your case?

It’s important to select a lawyer with experience in the area you need assistance in and who takes an approach you are comfortable with.

It’s worth researching, asking around to see if anyone can recommend someone, and taking time to read reviews and get a feel for who you will be working with.

Seeking a lawyer who is an accredited family law specialist can also be wise when dealing with complex or high-conflict matters.

Our family lawyers are dedicated in achieving a fair outcome for relationships that are near or past the point of breakdown.

At Tonkin Law, our team are genuinely committed to creating positive outcomes for you. We pride ourselves on acting with integrity, providing the necessary support to you and your family at all stages that we work with you.

To speak with one of our Family Lawyers in Melbourne today, Book an Appointment or call us on (03) 9435 9044.

What Our Family Law Clients Say

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Robert

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Stephen

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Brianna

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Ron

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Sara

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Daniel & Kiera

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Grant & Robyn

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Kerri

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Leigh

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Rose

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Noah

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Ava

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Pauline

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Mark

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Lindsay

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Matt

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Our Family Lawyers

St John Heath

PARTNER – Accredited Specialist in Family Law

St John Heath is a Partner at Tonkin Legal Group and a leading Family Lawyer in Victoria. 

Richard Tonkin

Accredited Specialist in Family Law

Richard Tonkin is a Consultant Lawyer and one of Victoria’s most experienced and respected Family Lawyers.

PARTNER

Ruby Heath is a Partner at Tonkin Legal Group.

PARTNER

Charlie Robinson is a Partner at Tonkin Legal Group.

Our Family Law Services

Contact Us to Schedule an Appointment

Contact us today for compassionate, skilled guidance in your family law matters. We’re here to listen, support, and help you through this challenging time with care and understanding.

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We have partnered with JustFund

We have partnered with JustFund as a practical and compassionate solution for clients who need support covering legal costs. Through our partnership, eligible clients can access a flexible line of credit to help manage legal fees and expenses, with nothing to repay until after a settlement is reached.

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