Parenting arrangements
Parenting plans versus consent orders versus court orders, the best-interests test, and what 50/50 really looks like in practice.
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Parenting plans versus consent orders versus court orders, the best-interests test, and what 50/50 really looks like in practice.
The first handover happened in a McDonald's car park because we couldn't agree on a 'neutral location'. My son was four. He cried. I cried in the car afterwards. Three years on, the same handover happens at school pickup on a Friday and nobody cries. Things bed down. They almost always do.
Parenting arrangements after separation are the most emotionally weighted part of the process and (counter-intuitively) the most procedurally flexible. The law gives you genuine choice in how formal you want the arrangement to be. The trade-off is between adaptability and enforceability.
There are three ways to lock in parenting arrangements after separation. They differ in formality, cost, and what happens when one parent stops cooperating.
Parenting plan
A written agreement signed and dated by both parents. No court involvement. No filing fee. Can be drafted on a kitchen table or with the help of a Family Relationship Centre.
The catch: a parenting plan is not legally enforceable. If your ex decides next month she won't follow it, your only recourse is to apply to court for parenting orders, at which point the existing plan is evidence (not a binding document).
Parenting plans suit cooperative ex-couples who want flexibility. If the relationship is amicable, this is often the right starting point.
Consent orders
Same content as a parenting plan, but filed with the FCFCA on Form 11 with a draft order attached. A registrar reviews it for compliance with the best-interests test, then sealed and made into a court order. Filing fee around $200. Most people use a solicitor to draft them; expect $1,500 to $4,000 in legal costs combined for property and parenting consent orders.
These are legally binding. Breach exposes the other parent to contravention proceedings, which can result in make-up time, fines, bonds, or (very rarely) imprisonment.
Court-ordered parenting orders
Where you can't agree. One party files an Initiating Application, mandatory mediation occurs (s60I certificate), interim hearings happen, family reports get written, and eventually a judge makes orders if you still can't settle.
Cost: $30,000 to $80,000 per side, sometimes more. Time: 12 to 30 months.
Section 60CC of the Family Law Act sets out how the court decides what's in the best interests of a child. Since the 2024 amendments, there are six primary considerations:
For Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children, an additional consideration applies regarding cultural connection.
Note what's not on the list: parental rights, equal time as a default, gender of the carer, who left whom. The 2024 reforms removed the previous presumption of 'equal shared parental responsibility', meaning the court no longer starts from a position of leaning toward shared decision-making. Each case starts from the child's interests, not the parents' positions.
Equal time is one of many possible arrangements. It is not a default, not a right, and not always practical. Courts will consider it where:
Common 50/50 patterns in practice:
If 50/50 isn't right, there are dozens of other patterns. The substantial-and-significant time arrangement (every second weekend plus half school holidays plus one weeknight dinner) is the most common alternative and gives roughly 30% of nights with the non-primary parent.
A serviceable parenting plan or order covers:
The more specific, the less room for conflict later. Vague terms like 'reasonable contact' generate fights. Concrete terms like 'every Wednesday from after school until 7pm' don't.
What if she refuses to mediate, won't reply to your solicitor's letters, or simply withholds the kids?
Step one: send a polite written request to mediate, kept on the record. Step two: invite her to a Family Relationship Centre intake. Step three: if she refuses or doesn't reply within a reasonable period, the FRC issues a s60I certificate confirming she didn't make a genuine effort. That certificate gets you into court.
Withholding kids without legal basis is a serious matter. The court takes it badly. Document everything: dates, attempts to collect, messages, calm requests. Don't escalate, don't argue at handover, don't say anything you wouldn't want read aloud in court. Your conduct under stress is itself evidence.
Two different concepts often confused:
You can have equal parental responsibility without equal time, and vice versa. Most orders address both separately.
Parenting orders are not 'set and forget'. Children grow, schools change, jobs move, kids develop preferences as they hit their teens. Material change in circumstances allows variation, by agreement or by application.
The strongest predictor of child wellbeing post-separation is not the percentage split. It's the level of conflict between parents. A 70/30 arrangement with two parents who cooperate beats a 50/50 arrangement with two parents who fight.
Be the parent your kid will thank when they're 25.
Show up. Stay calm. Stay consistent.
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