Please note that this News item is not maintained, and reflects the law as at the date of publication or update.
Christmas is a special, magical time of year – particularly for children. The holiday period is a time when families tend to get together; however, when families have separated it can be extremely difficult to navigate exactly what will happen with the children.
Here’s a few tips for making arrangements for children over the festive period:
- There is no definitive answer as to where children should spend Christmas. Neither parent has better rights than the other. Communication is therefore key. Try to negotiate where the children will spend Christmas as soon as possible to avoid any last-minute disputes.
- Examples of some arrangements that might work:
- Some families split Christmas Day itself so that their children get to spend time with both of them on 25th This usually means that the children wake up with one parent, spend the morning with them opening their presents before the other parent collects them, usually in the middle of the day, so that they can then spend the rest of the day with that parent.
- For some families Christmas arrangements are alternated each year so that the children spend time over the Christmas period with one parent and then the following year they are with the other parent.
- Another arrangement which sometimes takes place is that there are no special arrangements put in place for the Christmas period with the children spending time with each parent based on their normal routine.
- If separated couples are unable to negotiate an agreement between themselves, they should consider attempting Family Mediation or any other form of Non-Court Dispute Resolution (‘NCDR’). NCDR can be an extremely useful process to enable separated parents to discuss any issues relating to their children.
- Should it prove to be impossible to negotiate an agreement for the Christmas holiday period either parent can make an application to the Family Court for a Child Arrangements Order to determine the amount of time, including over the Christmas period, that children spend with each parent. However, court proceedings should be a matter of last resort and only used if all attempts to resolve matters by agreement, such as via Family Mediation, have been exhausted. Be aware though that even if court proceedings are brought, they can take many months to be determined. Further, if NCDR has not been attempted by one or both parents before the application is made there can be costs consequences. The very clear message being sent out by the senior Family Law judges is that parents should do their very best to negotiate child arrangements themselves and only issue court applications where absolutely necessary.
For more information and advice please contact a member of our family law team.
