Family law · Geelong, VIC
Family lawyers in Geelong: 19 profiles of our own, researched and register-noted and 99 on the Victorian register here. Every card says which of those it is, and links the source.
Your first call for a family law matter. Runs the matter from the first meeting — advice, negotiation, the paperwork, and court if it comes to that — and briefs a barrister when one is needed.
Contact the firm directlyA solicitor a law institute has accredited in a field after formal assessment. We show it only where the listing says so. Shown on the Victorian register.
Ask the firm, or check the registerAn advocate for hearings, trials and hard points of law. Some accept direct briefs from the public; most work comes through a solicitor.
Usually through your solicitor19 solicitors, with Doyle’s Guide rankings where they exist and a register note on every listing. We group lawyers by what Doyle’s Guide published and what we have checked ourselves. Inside a group the order is alphabetical, and no lawyer here is rated above another by us.
Within this group the order is alphabetical. It is not a ranking.
Principal, Head of Family Law · Harwood Andrews
Melbourne, VIC
Doyle’s Guide Preeminent 2026 · Family Law
Register checked 15 Sep 2026
Within this group the order is alphabetical. It is not a ranking.
Director · Cahill Family Lawyers
Melbourne, VIC
Doyle’s Guide Preeminent 2026 · Family Law
Register checked 15 Sep 2026
Director and Head of Family & Relationship Law · Coulter Legal
Melbourne, VIC
Doyle’s Guide Preeminent 2026 · Family Law
Register checked 15 Sep 2026
Within this group the order is alphabetical. It is not a ranking.
Solicitor · Agar Singh Legal
Melbourne, VIC
Doyle’s Guide Preeminent 2026 · Family Law
We have not checked anything on this listing yet. That is about our coverage, not about this lawyer.
Within this group the order is alphabetical. It is not a ranking.
Solicitor · Cahill Family Lawyers
Melbourne, VIC
Doyle’s Guide Leading 2026 · Family Law
We have not checked anything on this listing yet. That is about our coverage, not about this lawyer.
Solicitor · Coulter Legal
Melbourne, VIC
Doyle’s Guide Leading 2026 · Family Law
We have not checked anything on this listing yet. That is about our coverage, not about this lawyer.
Solicitor · Sterling Walters
Melbourne, VIC
Doyle’s Guide Leading 2026 · Family Law
We have not checked anything on this listing yet. That is about our coverage, not about this lawyer.
Solicitor · OFRM Lawyers
Melbourne, VIC
Doyle’s Guide Leading 2026 · Family Law
We have not checked anything on this listing yet. That is about our coverage, not about this lawyer.
Within this group the order is alphabetical. It is not a ranking.
Solicitor · Coulter Legal
Melbourne, VIC
Doyle’s Guide Recommended 2026 · Family Law
We have not checked anything on this listing yet. That is about our coverage, not about this lawyer.
Solicitor · Dwyer Legal
Melbourne, VIC
Doyle’s Guide Recommended 2026 · Family Law
We have not checked anything on this listing yet. That is about our coverage, not about this lawyer.
Solicitor · Heinz Law
Melbourne, VIC
Doyle’s Guide Recommended 2026 · Family Law
We have not checked anything on this listing yet. That is about our coverage, not about this lawyer.
Solicitor · Cargill Family Law
Melbourne, VIC
Doyle’s Guide Recommended 2026 · Family Law
We have not checked anything on this listing yet. That is about our coverage, not about this lawyer.
Solicitor · Harwood Andrews
Melbourne, VIC
Doyle’s Guide Recommended 2026 · Family Law
We have not checked anything on this listing yet. That is about our coverage, not about this lawyer.
Solicitor · Coulter Legal
Melbourne, VIC
Doyle’s Guide Recommended 2026 · Family Law
We have not checked anything on this listing yet. That is about our coverage, not about this lawyer.
Solicitor · OFRM Lawyers
Melbourne, VIC
Doyle’s Guide Recommended 2026 · Family Law
We have not checked anything on this listing yet. That is about our coverage, not about this lawyer.
Solicitor · Harwood Andrews
Melbourne, VIC
Doyle’s Guide Recommended 2026 · Family Law
We have not checked anything on this listing yet. That is about our coverage, not about this lawyer.
Solicitor · Allison Rowe Family Lawyers
Melbourne, VIC
Doyle’s Guide Recommended 2026 · Family Law
We have not checked anything on this listing yet. That is about our coverage, not about this lawyer.
Solicitor · Toner & Associates
Melbourne, VIC
Doyle’s Guide Recommended 2026 · Family Law
We have not checked anything on this listing yet. That is about our coverage, not about this lawyer.
Funded by Lawyer Reviews
Solicitor · Trapski Family Law
Melbourne, VIC
Doyle’s Guide Recommended 2026 · Family Law
We have not checked anything on this listing yet. That is about our coverage, not about this lawyer.
No lawyers match those filters.
Doyle’s Guide tiers are Doyle’s, from its peer survey, reproduced with attribution. Google ratings are ratings of the firm, not of an individual lawyer. Sponsored placements are labelled. Nobody pays to be listed.
These are register listings, not profiles and not rankings: every lawyer below holds a current Victorian practising certificate and has recorded family law as an area of practice on the public register. We have not reviewed, ranked or contacted them. Within this group the order is alphabetical. It is not a ranking.
© Victorian Legal Services Board and Commissioner. Reproduced from the Victorian Legal Services Board and Commissioner register of lawyers, retrieved 20 September 2026.
Family law in Australia is governed by the Family Law Act 1975 (Cth), administered by the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia. The same federal framework applies in every state — but how it’s resolved in practice varies significantly by registry, with different waitlists, court culture, and local Family Dispute Resolution capacity.
Matter types we see most often in our intake from Geelong and surrounding suburbs.
The four-step process under s79 — identifying the asset pool, assessing contributions, assessing future needs, and applying the just-and-equitable test. Most matters resolve through consent orders or mediation; only ~30% reach a contested hearing (AIFS 2024).
Live-with, spend-time and parental-responsibility arrangements. The 2024 amendments removed the equal-shared-parental-responsibility presumption — the court now decides on the child’s best interests with no statutory starting point.
Pre-nuptial, post-nuptial and separation BFAs under Part VIIIA. Used to provide certainty without court involvement, though both parties must take independent advice and the agreement can be set aside in narrow circumstances.
Filed after 12 months of separation. Sole or joint application, $1,170 filing fee (concession $390). Usually a 1–3 month process and rarely requires personal court attendance.
Spousal maintenance under Part VIII; child support administered separately through Services Australia. Property and parenting orders frequently include maintenance terms.
Apprehended Violence Orders, Intervention Orders and equivalent state-based protective orders. Often run concurrently with parenting and property matters.
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