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Australia: Defragmenting the Ever-Growing Family Law System

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  15 November 2023

Robin Fretwell Wilson
Affiliation:
University of Illinois
June Carbone
Affiliation:
University of Minnesota
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Summary

Résumé

Le système juridique fédéral de l’Australie a adopté diverses lois (parfois incohérentes) relatives à la réglementation des relations familiales, promulguées à la fois par le Commonwealth et par les gouvernements des États et des territoires. Au cours des dernières décennies, le gouvernement du Commonwealth a pris un certain nombre de mesures visant à remédier à cette fragmentation juridique. Dans la même période, une tendance à qualifier l’ensemble des lois relatives à la famille et aux questions connexes de « système de droit de la famille » s’est de plus en plus développée, ce qui a suscité de plus grandes attentes et une pression croissante pour améliorer l’homogénéité et la cohérence entre ces lois, les tribunaux et autres organismes qui les administrent. Cet article montre de quelle manière la défragmentation et l’harmonisation des lois relatives à la famille et aux questions connexes ont été réalisées en Australie, notamment la récente fusion des tribunaux fédéraux de droit de la famille.

INTRODUCTION

The law of marriage was first administered in Australia by the various states, which were then British colonies, prior to federation. The law was that brought from England, based upon a mixture of common law traditions, English legislation and the traditions of the Ecclesiastical Courts. Throughout the 1800s, there was a variety of state and territory marriage legislation.

Following federation in 1901, jurisdiction to make laws with respect to marriage and matrimonial causes was conferred upon the federal government, although this jurisdiction was barely exercised prior to 1959 when the Commonwealth passed the Matrimonial Causes Act 1959 (Cth). However, from federation in 1901 until 1961 when the Commonwealth passed the Marriage Act 1961 (Cth), each state and territory remained responsible for regulating marriage, resulting in the legal requirements for marriage varying from border to border.

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Publisher: Intersentia
Print publication year: 2022

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