15 November 2017

Share – and share alike

Family Law
Federal

Asked

Dear Mentor,

If an Independent Children's Lawyer has been appointed, is there any requirement for the applicant to copy the respondent into all communication sent to the Independent Children's Lawyer (similar to what might be done if one was communicating with the Court)?

Thank you for any comments you can offer.

Kind regards

Answered

Thank you for the question.

There is no specific requirement to copy in the other party on all communications with the Independent Children's Lawyer, however it is not uncommon to do so. Given the role of the Independent Children's Lawyer is to be impartial and independent of the parties, copying in the other party aids transparency.

Communications with the Independent Children's Lawyer are not privileged, therefore, the Independent Children's Lawyer might deem it appropriate to forward copies of the communication to the other party or their solicitor if the other party was not copied in.

Guidelines for Independent Children's Lawyer’s may be found here.

Regards

Mentor