The main legislation for Australian Family Law is the Family Law Act (1975). Certain regulations, laws and rules may be subject to amendment. It is important to stay updated about such changes, especially if you are in the midst of a family law matter in Australia.
On April 1, 2025, there were key regulations that commenced. Firstly, the Family Law Regulations 2024 replaced the 1984 Regulations. Secondly, the Family Law (Superannuation Regulations 2025) replaced the 2001 Regulations. Thirdly, the Family Law (Family Dispute Resolution Practitioners) Regulations 2025 has replaced the 2008 Regulations.
What does this mean?
The most notable change is that many of the family law court forms have changed, and these new forms need to be used from 1 April 2025 onwards.
The tables below include names of forms that have been updates based on the relevant regulation changes.
Family Law Regulations 2024:
| Application in Arbitration |
| Form 1 – Request for service abroad of judicial documents and certificate (or Form 1A) |
| Form 2 – Summary of the documents to be served (or Form 1B) |
| Form 6 – Application for Arbitration |
| Form 7 – Application relating to relevant property or financial arbitration |
| Form 8 – Application to register arbitration award |
| Form 9 – Application to register decree affecting registered arbitration award |
| Response to an application in arbitration |
| Subpoena in an arbitration |
| Subpoena (Family Law) |
Family Law (Family Dispute Resolution Practitioners) Regulations 2025:
| Certificate of Dispute Resolution |
Family Law (Superannuation) Regulations 2025
| Consent Order Kit, Application for Consent Orders |
| Superannuation Information Kit |
All these forms can be found on the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia website.
