The Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Act 2006 (AML/CTF Act) is Australia’s primary legislation for preventing money laundering, terrorism financing, proliferation financing, and other serious financial crime.

In simple terms, the Act requires certain businesses — known as reporting entities — to know who their customers/ clients are (customer identification and verification), assess and manage the risk those customers/clients pose, monitor transactions and services for suspicious activity, report certain matters to the regulator and keep records demonstrating compliance. The Act is administered and enforced by the Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (AUSTRAC), Australia’s financial intelligence agency and AML/CTF regulator.

Purpose of the AML/CTF Act

The AML/CTF Act exists to protect: Australia’s financial system, The broader economy and the community/citizens. It does this by making it harder for criminals to hide or move illicit funds, use legitimate businesses to launder money and finance terrorism or organised crime. The regime does not turn businesses into law enforcement agencies. Rather, it positions them as gatekeepers — identifying risk early and reporting concerns where required.

Why It Matters More Now: Tranche 2 Reforms

When introduced in 2006, the AML/CTF regime applied mainly to financial institutions, casinos and other high-transaction businesses (often referred to as Tranche 1 entities).

From 1 July 2026, under the Tranche 2 reforms, the Act will extend to a broader range of professional services, including: Lawyers/ Solicitors, Real estate agents, Conveyancers, Accountants and tax agents, Trust and company service providers, Dealers in precious metals and stones.

What This Means for Family Lawyers

Family law matters frequently involves property transfers, trust and company structures, cross-border assets/ transfer of funds and large financial settlements- international or local. These are precisely the types of transactions that attract AML scrutiny.

The Practical Takeaway

Understanding the AML/CTF Act — and preparing for Tranche 2 — is essential to protect the legal firm from regulatory risk, avoid inadvertent involvement in financial crime, maintain professional integrity, safeguard the reputation of the legal profession. As the regime expands, family lawyers will increasingly play a frontline role in protecting Australia’s financial system — not as investigators, but as informed and vigilant gatekeepers.

Allegations of money laundering can make family law cases more complex and stressful. The Family Court takes these matters seriously, especially when it comes to protecting children and making sure only legally obtained assets are divided.

What Happens to Property Linked to Crime?

If there are claims that some family assets come from illegal activities like money laundering, the Court may treat these assets differently. Money or property gained through crime can be taken away by the government, meaning it might not be included when dividing property between separating partners. This can leave less to share and may affect both parties’ financial futures.

How Criminal Investigations Affect Family Law Cases

If someone is being investigated or charged with money laundering, family law cases can be delayed. The Court might wait for the criminal matter to finish before making decisions about property or children, especially if the outcome could change what assets are available or affect a parent’s ability to care for their children. People involved in criminal cases may also be less willing to share information about their finances, making it harder for the Court to get a clear picture of the family’s assets.

Protecting Children and Vulnerable Family Members

The Family Court’s main concern in parenting cases is always the best interests of the children. If money laundering or related criminal activity puts children at risk, the Court can make special orders to protect them, such as supervised visits or limiting a parent’s time with the children. The Court can also make orders to help keep vulnerable family members safe, such as giving them the right to stay in the family home or providing financial support.

Key Points

Valentine’s Day is usually associated with flowers, dinners, and promises of forever. It celebrates commitment, optimism, and love at its most hopeful stage. But for many couples, love stories evolve. Some strengthen over time; others change direction. While it may feel unromantic to think about separation on a day devoted to romance, being smart about your future is not cynical, it is responsible.

In Australia, relationships, whether marriages or de facto partnerships are governed by the Family Law Act 1975 (Cth). That legislation provides a framework for property division and financial adjustment when relationships break down. It is designed to be fair, but the process can be emotionally and financially draining if parties are unprepared or in conflict.

There is a misconception that planning for separation signals doubt. In reality, it reflects maturity. Just as people take out insurance policies not because they expect disaster but because they understand risk, couples can structure their financial affairs thoughtfully without undermining their relationship.

A Binding Financial Agreement (‘BFA’) is one such mechanism. Under the Family Law Act, couples can enter into agreements before marriage often referred to as prenups, during a relationship, or after separation. These agreements can set out how property, financial resources, and even spousal maintenance will be handled if the relationship ends.

BFAs are powerful tools, but they must be entered into freely and with proper independent legal advice. Agreements signed under pressure or significant inequality may be vulnerable to challenge. Being smart is not just about signing a document, it is about ensuring fairness, transparency, and legal compliance.

When separation occurs, persistence and clarity matter. Emotions run high, particularly where property, businesses, or children are involved. The law focuses on contributions financial and non-financial, future needs, and what is just and equitable. But litigation is costly, both financially and psychologically.

Those who approach separation strategically, gathering documents early, seeking sound legal advice, and focusing on resolution rather than revenge, are often in a stronger position. Persistence here does not mean hostility. It means staying committed to a fair outcome even when the process feels slow or difficult.

A well drafted BFA provides certainty. It can

  1. Quarantine pre-existing assets such as inheritances or family businesses.
  2. Protect intergenerational wealth.
  3. Avoid protracted litigation.
  4. Sustain a healthy relationship in the future.
  5. Provide clarity about spousal maintenance.

Importantly, BFAs remove the Court’s discretion to alter property interests except in limited circumstances such as fraud, unconscionable conduct, or material non-disclosure. For many couples particularly those entering second marriages or bringing significant assets into a relationship this certainty is invaluable.

However, they are not suitable for everyone. If entered into carelessly, they can create more disputes rather than fewer. Being smart means assessing whether a BFA is appropriate for your circumstances, not simply assuming it is necessary.

Valentine’s Day celebrates the beginning of commitment. The law deals with what happens if commitment ends. Between those two points lies the reality of life, careers change, children, health shifts, and financial hardship and evolution.

The couples who thrive and the individuals who navigate separation with dignity tend to share common traits, foresight, resilience, and informed decision making. Being persistent does not mean clinging to something unhealthy; it means persistently protecting your wellbeing and financial stability.

Love may be emotional, but separation is legal and financial.

This Valentine’s Day, celebrate love wholeheartedly. But also remember being smart about your future is not unromantic. It is empowering.

This is a question that we are often asked at Freedman & Gopalan Solicitors, and the position is relatively clear in New South Wales.

If the DNA test or paternity test requires the taking of a sample from the body of an adult son, for example, a buccal swab, hair, blood, or nail test, without the knowledge and consent of the adult son, it will almost certainly give rise to civil liability for the person taking the sample. At common law, any physical interference with a person without their consent will amount to a battery or trespass to the person.

However, if the adult son is competent, the parent will have no authority to consent on behalf of the adult son. Adults are presumed competent, and incompetence is specific to the particular decision and cannot be presumed on the basis of a diagnosis, for example, autism. This is the position under the Guardianship Act 1987 NSW and NSW Capacity Guidelines.

In practice, reputable legal providers of legal DNA tests tend to require the participation, consent, and identification verification of the tested individual and therefore cannot be relied upon in covert practices for legal purposes.

Some individuals ask if the DNA sample can be collected from an item that is discarded, like a cup or tissue. While this prevents bodily interference, there are still some legal implications that must be faced. The collection of this information is covered under the Health Records and Information Privacy Act 2002 (NSW), where the regulation of the collection, use, and disclosure of the information is governed by testing providers. There are also “discarded item” questions that are highly dependent on the facts of the specific case, which makes reliability low.

Testing companies commonly cited as service providers include EasyDNA Australia, DNA Solutions Australia, and DNA Labs Australia, which are all operating within the aforementioned legal and regulatory guidelines.

The bottom line:
With respect to NSW law, a DNA test for an adult son without his consent, especially where bodily materials are used, is not only legally risky but will yield no legally admissible or reliable result.

With school holidays drawing to a close, students in NSW are set to return back to school from Monday 2 February 2026 (Eastern Division) or Monday 9 February 2026 (Western Division). From attending school for the very first time, starting at a new school, or entering a new grade, it is no doubt an exciting tradition for families to take photos of their children and share this milestone on the internet.

However, Australian Federal Police Commander, Helen Schneider, has warned parents that it is important to be mindful and vigilant about what images they post or share online. Seemingly innocuous details in back-to-school photographs such as school signs, uniforms and street signs may allow individuals on the internet to easily identify what school your child may be attending. This can lead to dangerous consequences as your child’s privacy and protection may be compromised.

The Australian Federal Police has urged parents to take actions such as blurring or obscuring your child’s school logo on their uniform, or even the background, to protect them from being targeted or identified. Other actions to protect your child’s privacy online include:

Taking these measures ensures that you limit the risk of pictures being seen by people who may misuse them or have poor intentions.

The Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia’s recent case Joustra & Schuman [2025] introduces seminal ideas reaffirming s 60CC of Family Law Act 1975 (Cth) which focuses on how courts apply and interpret frameworks to family law matters.

What is Section 60CC?

60CC of the Family Law Act is a statutory inscription on the discretionary factors that a court must consider when determining what is in the best interest of a concerned child. The court’s primary focus is on the child’s safety, wellbeing and developmental needs, including protection from harm, developmental, psychological, emotional and cultural needs of the child, the child’s views and each carer’s ability to support the child. The court also considers the benefit of the child maintaining relationships with parents and significant others. This is important in determining as to whether a child should be removed or added to the care of a particular person as seen in this case.

Facts and key issues of the case

In Joustra & Schuman [2025], the initial facts show that the parents separated after a relationship that produced one child born in 2019, with Final parenting orders allowing the child to primarily live with the mother. However, in 2024, the mother ceased contact with the father, alleging their six-year-old was abused by him. This was found to be an unsustained allegation, as per Police and Child Protection Service reports. The father proceeded to challenge the initial Parenting Orders by lodging a fresh application to the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Division 2). There, the courts questioned the mother’s capacity to care for the child.

How the courts applied it

In application of Section 60CC(2)(a), (b) and (c) of the Act, the Court found the mother’s persistent allegations and conduct caused emotional and psychological harm to the child. It detrimentally impacted the child’s developmental needs in their engagement with a safe parent. As per his Honour’s words:

“Instead, [the child] has been subjected to interviews and examinations with people in authority and has been left traumatised to the point where [the child] is apparently triggered when seeing certain marked vehicles like ambulances. In addition to that trauma, [the child]  has been fed a false narrative that [the child]  is a victim at the hands of [the child’s]  father, when the reality is that [the child’s]  psychological and emotional safety has been imperilled by the one person he has always trusted, [the child’s]  mother.”

As such, the Child was ordered to be in the primary care of the father and mandatory therapeutic support.

Key Takeaways

It is imperative to understand that the Family Act pushes courts to focus upon the emotional and developmental needs of a child. False or unsubstantiated allegations can seriously impact parenting outcomes where the child is harmed by repeated exposure which reaffirms the act’s intention in making sure that all needs of a child are met rather than some necessary needs.

If you need advice today, please do not hesitate to contact our offices via telephone for a free initial consultation.

"Light will win, a gathering of unity and remembrance" (the theme chosen by the Chabad Community in Bondi).

On Thursday 22 January 2026, a National Day of Mourning will be held to remember and honour the victims of the Bondi Beach Terrorist Attack, along with families, friends and communities who have been impacted by this tragic event. The Australian Government has invited all Australians to join in a minute of silence at 7:01PM AEDT to remember the 15 innocent victims of the Bondi attack on 14 December 2025.

Yesterday, on Tuesday 20 January 2026, Parliament passed new gun control laws which include:

- Enhanced background checks for people with gun licences

- Limiting the importation of guns to Australian citizens

- Increased restrictions on the type of guns which are allowed to be imported

Parliament also passed new hate crime laws including:

- Greater powers for a Minister to cancel or refuse a visa if a person has spread hateful or extremist views

- The ability to designate organisations as “hate groups,” meaning that members and donors can be jailed

Freedman & Gopalan Solicitors joins the nation in mourning the loss of the victims in the attack, and sends our condolences to their family, friends and communities.

This matter was related to property settlement in a case of marriage breakdown, which was heavily contingent upon:

Background

Findings by Judge Street held that:

Orders

The court ordered several things, some of which include the following:

This ruling confirms the following:

Over the course of a week, I’ve learnt and improved many valuable skills at Freedman & Gopalan Solicitors like organisation, initiative and independence. I worked with a wonderful team who were able to teach me new skills and introduce me to the professional world of law. I was able to work in a professional environment that was nurturing and allowed me to gain insight into the different aspects of law.

During my work placement I was given challenging tasks that allowed me to work on skills like multi-tasking and organisation. Although I struggled at times, it was extremely rewarding to finish tasks that I knew were tough. The team at Freedman & Gopalan were also extremely willing to always help and had no issues giving me extra help when I needed it. Some tasks were repetitive at first but after understanding the importance of them it became more interesting. For example, scanning was a very tedious process but understanding that they were important legal documents that we couldn’t just throw away made me think about the importance of these legal documents and the role they played in this environment. Understanding how billing and invoices worked was a skill I can now apply to my general life and work environments and I’m grateful I got to learn in such a patient workplace. Being able to participate and complete law related tasks gave me a great insight into tasks I would have to complete in a professional law environment.

The experience and valuable knowledge I’ve learnt in such a short time will stick with me for life and I look forward to putting them into practice in the coming years. I’m extremely grateful for the time, guidance and support the team Freedman & Gopalan have given me and I will cherish the experience. Coming into such a welcoming environment helped me feel extremely comfortable asking questions and learning about a possible career path in the future. This experience with Freedman & Gopalan Solicitors has reinforced my interest in pursuing a career in law and motivated me to continue developing these skills for my future career.

 

envelopeprinterphonemap-marker