Section 12GFamily Law Act 1975 (Cth)

Obligations on family counsellors, family dispute resolution practitioners and arbitrators

(1) A family counsellor, family dispute resolution practitioner or arbitrator who deals with a married person considering instituting:

(a) proceedings for a divorce order in relation to the marriage; or

(b) financial or Part VII proceedings in relation to the marriage;

must give the married person (and in appropriate cases, that person’s spouse) documents containing the information prescribed under 12C (about reconciliation).

Note: For other obligations of family counsellors and family dispute resolution practitioners in relation to Part VII matters, see sections 60D and 63DA. Those sections do not apply to arbitrators.

(2) A family counsellor, family dispute resolution practitioner or arbitrator does not have to comply with subsection (1), if he or she:

(a) has reasonable grounds to believe that the person has already been given documents containing the prescribed information; or

(b) considers that there is no reasonable possibility of a reconciliation between the parties to the marriage.

Sourced from the Federal Register of Legislation at 26 May 2026. For the latest information on Australian Government law please go to https://www.legislation.gov.au. Verify the current text against the official source before relying on it.

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