Australia Passes New Legislation affecting De Facto Couples

Australia has now joined New Zealand by passing legislation treating certain de facto couples like married couples when the relationship breaks down.  Like the New Zealand legislation, the Australian law (which become effective March 1 2009) directs courts to consider a number of factors to detmine whether the couple is a "de facto couple."  Articles describing this new law can be found in Volume 23, number 2 of the Australian Journal of Family Law (August 2009).

T.O.