Legal Project Management Plan & Checklist
Purpose of this Guide: Use this plan when your client is the applicant seeking family law orders in the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia but the respondent cannot be located for personal service. This guide covers the steps required to obtain a court order dispensing with the requirement of service, allowing the substantive application to proceed in the respondent's absence. Open this plan at intake and follow it through to final court orders.
Jurisdiction: Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (FCFCOA), applying the Family Law Act 1975 (Cth) and Rule 2.34 of the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Family Law) Rules 2021. Applies nationally across all Australian registries. A fork is available for seeking a substituted service order instead of full dispensation.
The Process at a Glance: The lawyer reviews the filed substantive initiating application. A process server is instructed to attempt personal service, producing a detailed non-service report. The lawyer conducts exhaustive searches (AEC electoral roll, social media, inquiries to relatives and employers, and skip tracing). If all leads are exhausted, the lawyer drafts an Application in a Proceeding and a supporting Affidavit detailing every search chronologically. The Genuine Steps Certificate is completed explaining why pre-action procedures could not be executed. The documents are sworn or affirmed (including special witness remote witnessing under Queensland laws if done via audio-visual link) and filed via the Commonwealth Courts Portal. The Judicial Registrar hears the application ex parte. If granted, the sealed dispensation order is saved to the firm's system and the substantive matter proceeds to an undefended hearing.
Use this fork when your client is seeking a substituted service order under Rule 2.34 rather than full dispensation because the respondent cannot be personally served but can be reached through a verified alternative contact channel (such as a specific email address, active social media profile, or via a known relative). This guide covers the steps required to verify the alternative contact channel, secure the substituted service order, execute service, and file proof of compliance.
Key Legislation and Case Law: Family Law Act 1975 (Cth) - s 44(3) and s 44(4) (limitation periods and hardship gateway for leave out of time), s 60I (compulsory dispute resolution certificate), s 60I(9)(b)(vi) (exemption where whereabouts unknown), s 67J (location orders), s 67P (Commonwealth information orders), s 71B and s 90RI (duty of financial disclosure), s 79A (setting aside orders for non-disclosure). Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Family Law) Rules 2021 - Rule 2.27 (personal service requirement), Rule 2.34 (substituted service or dispensation order). Oaths Act 1867 (Qld) - Part 6A (remote audio-visual link witnessing requirements by an active legal practitioner special witness).
* Disclaimer: We're nobody's lawyer, because we aren't lawyers. You are, so you know better than to take legal advice from an app. We also aren't accountants or dog trainers - just digital spirit guides taking zero liability for any of this. This site exists to gather the collective knowledge of practitioners like you. Verify everything and submit your feedback on the Dispensation of Service (Applicant) matter plan to improve the playbook. THIS IS NOT LEGAL ADVICE, it's a request for input.
This legal matter plan provides a structured workflow for FAMILY_LAW cases, outlining the standard LITIGATION process. Utilize these tracking templates to manage your legal cases efficiently.
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