Family & Relationships · Sydney North Shore & Northern Beaches
15 parenting & child custody firms in Sydney North Shore & Northern Beaches, New South Wales, including Chatswood, North Sydney, Hornsby, Manly.
15 firms
Milsons Point, NSW · Sydney North Shore & Northern Beaches
Dorter Family Lawyers & Mediators provides legal services in Milsons Point, NSW. Listed practice areas include Family Law, Property & Conveyancing and Parenting & Child Custody.
Australian courts decide parenting arrangements based on the child's best interests, with safety the first consideration. Parents can record an agreement in a parenting plan, which is flexible but not enforceable, or in consent orders, which are. A lawyer helps you understand what arrangements are realistic and how to present your case if agreement isn't possible.
Parenting arrangements shape children's daily lives for years. A clear, workable agreement reduces conflict and gives children stability.
Under the Family Law Act, the child's best interests are paramount and safety is the first consideration. 2024 reforms removed the presumption of equal shared parental responsibility, so each case turns on its own facts. Agreements can be recorded in a parenting plan or made binding as consent orders.
Understand the next step
Describe the children’s current arrangements and the practical problem you want resolved. School, health, travel, communication and safety issues may need different discussions from a disagreement about time spent with each parent.
Ask how a proposed plan differs from a court order and what process would be required to record or change arrangements.
This search area brings together North Shore and Northern Beaches centres. For a property purchase, family matter or estate, compare the actual office location rather than assuming every firm is close to your suburb.
For parenting & child custody, ask which parts of the work the firm handles itself and whether it has relevant NSW experience. Let the lawyer know if a property, employer, other party or existing proceeding is outside Sydney North Shore & Northern Beaches. Your home address alone does not determine the applicable process.
Explain the relationship history, current arrangements and outcome you want. Identify immediate concerns and provide every existing order or agreement.
Discuss negotiation and family dispute resolution. Parenting applications generally involve prior dispute resolution unless an exception applies; ask the lawyer to assess the appropriate process.
Ask how an agreement would be documented and implemented. Clarify who handles related transfers, finance and estate-planning work.
Ask for separate estimates for advice, negotiation, document preparation and court work. A fixed divorce-application fee does not necessarily cover parenting or financial disputes.
Ask for a written scope identifying the work you are authorising, the person responsible and when costs will be reviewed. If you only want advice on one step, say so before the firm begins wider work.
Highlight court dates, proposed travel or relocation and any planned property sale. Ask which time limits apply to your particular issues rather than assuming there is one deadline for everything.
In New South Wales, most criminal and minor civil matters start in the Local Court, with more serious matters in the District Court and Supreme Court. Tenancy, strata, consumer and guardianship disputes usually go to NCAT. Solicitors are licensed by the Law Society of New South Wales, and complaints about lawyers go to the Office of the Legal Services Commissioner.
Good to know
No. The law focuses on the child's best interests. Equal time can be ordered where it suits the child, but there is no automatic starting point of equal time.
Relocating in a way that affects the other parent's time usually needs their agreement or a court order. Get advice before moving.
Most matters start in the Local Court. More serious cases go to the District Court or the Supreme Court of NSW. Family law matters are heard by the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia.
Balgowlah, NSW · Sydney North Shore & Northern Beaches
De Saxe O'Neill Family Lawyers provides legal services in Balgowlah, NSW. Listed practice areas include Family Law, Mediation & Dispute Resolution and Litigation & Dispute Resolution.
Dee Why, NSW · Sydney North Shore & Northern Beaches
Wallen Family Law provides legal services in Dee Why, NSW. Listed practice areas include Family Law, Parenting & Child Custody and Property & Conveyancing.
North Sydney, NSW · Sydney North Shore & Northern Beaches
Movement Legal provides legal services in North Sydney, NSW. Listed practice areas include Family Law, Binding Financial Agreements and Property & Conveyancing.
Chatswood, NSW · Sydney North Shore & Northern Beaches
Roseville Legal Services provides legal services in Chatswood, NSW. Listed practice areas include Wills & Estates, Family Law and Property & Conveyancing.
Chatswood, NSW · Sydney North Shore & Northern Beaches
Orbell Family Lawyers Central Coast provides legal services in Chatswood, NSW. Listed practice areas include Family Law, Parenting & Child Custody and Divorce & Separation.
North Sydney, NSW · Sydney North Shore & Northern Beaches
Modern Family Law Solutions provides legal services in North Sydney, NSW. Listed practice areas include Family Law, Parenting & Child Custody and Property & Conveyancing.
Chatswood, NSW · Sydney North Shore & Northern Beaches
Chatswood Family Lawyers provides legal services in Chatswood, NSW. Listed practice areas include Family Law, Divorce & Separation and Binding Financial Agreements.
Hornsby, NSW · Sydney North Shore & Northern Beaches
Watts McCray Lawyers Hornsby provides legal services in Hornsby, NSW. Listed practice areas include Family Law, Business & Commercial Law and Health & Medical Practitioner Law.
North Sydney, NSW · Sydney North Shore & Northern Beaches
Dorter Family Lawyers & Mediators provides legal services in North Sydney, NSW. Listed practice areas include Family Law, Divorce & Separation and Parenting & Child Custody.
Brookvale, NSW · Sydney North Shore & Northern Beaches
Reid Family Lawyers provides legal services in Brookvale, NSW. Listed practice areas include Family Law, Mediation & Dispute Resolution and Property & Conveyancing.
Frenchs Forest, NSW · Sydney North Shore & Northern Beaches
Divorce.com.au provides legal services in Frenchs Forest, NSW. Listed practice areas include Family Law, Divorce & Separation and Domestic Violence & AVOs.
North Sydney, NSW · Sydney North Shore & Northern Beaches
Gloria Family Law provides legal services in North Sydney, NSW. Listed practice areas include Family Law, Parenting & Child Custody and Property & Conveyancing.
North Sydney, NSW · Sydney North Shore & Northern Beaches
Iconveyancing.com.au provides legal services in North Sydney, NSW. Listed practice areas include Property & Conveyancing, Wills & Estates and Planning & Environment.
Brookvale, NSW · Sydney North Shore & Northern Beaches
Jacqueline Townsend Solicitor provides legal services in Brookvale, NSW. Listed practice areas include Family Law, Mediation & Dispute Resolution and Property & Conveyancing.
Directory guidance updated 19 September 2026. General information to help you prepare for a conversation with a professional; not advice about your individual matter. Check current requirements with the relevant authority.
Practising certificates in New South Wales are managed by the Law Society of New South Wales. You can check a solicitor's status on its public register or by contacting it directly.