Family Law Insights & News

If after many attempts your ex is refusing to communicate with you, you can still take steps to get legal advice, start mediation or ask the Court to make decision about property and parenting matters.

A former partner who avoids communicating with you can add to an already difficult situation. Being met with silence when you're trying to undertake informal negotiations or resolve a disagreement can be maddening. It can leave you feeling uncertain and stuck.

Grandparents can be a steady and important part of a child’s life. They may offer love plus a sense of identity and connection to extended family. What happens to a child's pre-existing relationship with their grandparents - and the status of grandparents' rights under Australian family law - is an issue affecting many families when a separation and divorce occurs.

Debra Parker, director of Parker Coles Curtis, has been named to the Elite Women 2026 list published by Australasian Lawyer and NZ Lawyer. The recognition highlights Parker’s career spanning private practice and the bench, her dual specialist accreditation in family law and dispute resolution, and her leadership in advancing alternative dispute resolution in family law.