Other resources on this Website
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Help with family violence
The Domestic Violence Line can be accessed on 1800 656 463 (TTY 1800 671 442). This is a statewide free-call number that is available 24 hours, seven days a week, and provides telephone counselling, information and referrals for people who are experiencing or have experienced family violence.
Elizabeth Evatt Community Legal Centre operates a Women’s Domestic Violence Court Advocacy Service out of Katoomba, Lithgow, Bathurst and Mudgee local courts. Call 02 4782 4155 or 1300 363 967 for assistance and queries.
Help for women and men
Women’s Legal Services NSW is a state-wide service that offers legal advice, support and referral for women.
MensLine Australia is a telephone support, information and referral service, helping men to deal with relationship problems. Call 1300 78 99 78.
Help for families
Family and Community Services is a NSW government department that offers support and referral for parents, families and carers.
The Anchor: Supporting kids through separation, is conducted by UnitingCare Unifam and funded by the Attorney-General’s Department to assist children and young people, their parents and their support system during and after separation. The Anchor provides:
counselling for children and young people
therapeutic groups for children and young people to share their experiences with others who understand
Child Consultation so that children’s experiences are understood and their needs are considered when their parents are in Mediation (Family Dispute Resolution), Counselling or in a Parenting Orders Program (Keeping Contact)
seminars for parents
seminars for professionals
consultation to other professionals, e.g. teachers, school counsellors, Independent Children’s Lawyers.
Up to Parents is an incredibly useful website that offers vital information about the effect of conflict on children, together with a variety of strategies to help get things back on track. Parents are often compulsorily directed to this site by the Federal Magistrates Court with a view to them doing the free online program aimed at reducing conflict around children.
Free legal advice and resources
Legal Aid NSW offers free advice and assistance to eligible people. There are some very useful publications available from their website.
Community Legal Centres NSW is the peak body for Community Legal Centres across the State and has a directory of Community Legal Centres which can offer advice, referral, casework, legal education and law reform services.
LawAccess is a free, state-wide telephone advice and referral service.
Family Dispute Resolution & mediation resources
‘Family Dispute Resolution’ or ‘FDR’ refers to a process designed to help families sort out their problems (including separation and managing co-parenting) without going to court.
Family Relationship Centre Bathurst
Family Relationship Centre Penrith
Courts
Child support resources
The Child Support Agency is the organisation charged with overseeing the Australian child support system. Their website contains all you need to know about their processes, as well as some very useful online calculators.
About Mark
Mark MacDiarmid is accredited as a specialist in family law by the Law Society of NSW, having become a lawyer in 1986 after graduating with degrees in Arts and Law from the University of Sydney. He holds a Postgraduate Diploma of Psychology from Charles Sturt University, a Graduate Diploma in Family Dispute Resolution from the Australian Institute of Social Relations, and is a member of the NSW Legal Aid Commission’s Independent Children’s Lawyer and Mental Health Advocacy Panels. He is a member of the Law Society of NSW, the Family Law Section of the Law Council of Australia, a practitioner member of LEADR and a member of the Australian Institute of Family Law Arbitrators and Mediators (AIFLAM). Mark is accredited by the Federal Attorney General’s Department to provide compulsory Family Dispute Resolution and to issue s60I Certificates under the Family Law Act for disputes involving children. He is also an Accredited Mediator under the National Mediator Accreditation System, a member of the Law Society of NSW's Mediator Panel and the NSW District Court panel of Mediators.
The information on this website is not intended to constitute legal advice and is not to be used or relied upon as such. The law can be very complex and we strongly recommend that you obtain the assistance of a qualified lawyer to help you with legal problems. Our links page provides information about a number of free legal services.
