Family Law Reform

Identify and investigate these contemporary issues relating to family law and evaluate the effectiveness of legal and non-legal responses to these issues

The Family Court ensures that each case and judgement concerning marriage/relationship breakdowns involving children is treated equally with emphasis on the child and its best interests. At times mutual agreement on the shared parental responsibility (the underlying principle of the law

Commercial surrogacy is the process in which a woman is paid a fee to carry and deliver a baby to term. Once the baby is delivered, the woman relinquishes all parental rights to the commissioning couple who exclusively raise the child as their own. Altruistic surrogacy, by contrast, is an arrangement where the surrogate receives reimbursement but only for the expenses that she may have incurred during the pregnancy. In this essay I will argue that commercial surrogacy should not be market-inalienable. I will start by outlining Elizabeth Anderson’s argument in “Is Women’s Labor a Commodity?” in which she offers a number of criticisms to commercial surrogacy. I will then outline objections to the argument and highlight how her argument is highly speculative and does not provide an adequate basis for the prohibition of commercial surrogacy.

The role of law reform in achieving justice for both families and members of society due to the changing ways in Australian culture. Surrogacy has become a more popular choice due to increasing numbers of Australian women wanting to put of child bearing until they are older in life which decrease their chances of being able to have children, this is due to changing cultural factors one being women wanting to stay in the work force. Reasons for surrogacy is also due to the child protection policy, which is making it more difficult/stricter for people to adopt children so surrogacy is seen as an easier option. As well as improved technology available which provides assistance for families through the surrogacy process. The legal issues within

Family law is the most complex aspect of the Australian legal system as it is constantly under review and reform pursuing to adopt society’s continual change in values and principles. The changing of laws in an attempt to be parallel with society is a strenuous process. Nevertheless, legislations are reflective of contemporary society’s values and ethics. Numerous legal issues arise in regards to family including, same sex relationships, domestic violence and divorce ideally on the best interest of the child, where family laws have been imposed to protect individuals and aim to achieve justice.

When one or more persons contract with a woman to gestate a child than relinquish that child after birth to the person or couple is known as surrogacy. It is a course of action that goes outside of natural reproduction. For some, it is the only method of having children, extending family. Surrogacy has been stirring up many controversies over the years. Ethics, morals, laws, religious views, etc. have played a major role in the issues that follow the topic of surrogacy. Laws and regulations pertaining to surrogacy vary from state to state. Some states have no enforceable laws

The right to have children is understood in very different ways and people’s ethics and values are put to the test each and everyday when they find out they not only must take care of themselves but the lives of another human being. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights adopted this statement regarding the right to bear children “men and women of full age, without any limitations to race, nationality or religion, have the right to marry and found a family”[1]. This concept has been viewed in multiple ways and according to ethical theorists; they agree that no rights are absolute. However, it is said that for women at least, there is a fundamental privilege to have children. The right to

Family Law Act 1975, in the same year established the Family Court of Australia, and the Act focuses on issues as a result of martial breakdown, such as ‘no fault divorce’; best interest of children, equal valuation of partners contributions (breadwinner / homemaker), equal consideration of mother and father when assessing custody. The Act has been amended and evolved to include coverage for casual and de-facto relationships and ex-nuptial relationships, including distribution of debts and Superannuation as equal property, strengthening court process around domestic and family

The effectiveness of legal and non-legal responses concerning contemporary issues within families is to a moderate extent. For example, whilst legal responses such as the Family Law Act 1975 (FLAct) and the Property (Relationships) Act 1984 creates enforceability and fairness, there is a great lack of equality and, in some cases, a lack of timeliness which is shown in the article Caught in the Middle of Parenting Nightmare1 in which two parents have fought for more than 7 years about their child’s upbringing. Furthermore, whilst non-legal mechanisms such as the media creates fairness and accessibility, there is a lack of enforceability as the media does not hold legislative power. The contemporary issues that exist within families include divorce,

Legislation and case law has been evolving throughout history surrounding testamentary promises. The attitudes of the courts have ebbed and flowed towards claims testing the validity of a will. New Zealand was the first country in the commonwealth jurisdiction to enact a family protection act, the Testators Family Maintenance Act 1900. Although legislation has changed considerably since the incorporation of the first act, the central concept has remained essentially unchanged. There are three main statutes in New Zealand governing family protection and testamentary promises, Property (relationships) Act 1976, Law Reform (Testamentary Promises) Act 1949 and the Family Protection Act 1955. This essay will explore these

Societies changing social values towards the notion of ‘family’ has resulted in the legal system attempting to reform the law to reflect these changes. A family is defined by the Australian Bureau of Statistics as ‘two or more persons living in the same household related to each other by blood, marriage, de facto, fostering or adoption’. Within the various types of family relationships, varying differences can cause breakdowns. Due to the range family types that exist today, relationship breakdowns have become complex. The legal system aims to provide a fair and equitable outcome, with the aim to achieve justice for all those involved, despite the challenge of conflicting interest of parties.

Under s.60 of the Assisted Human Reproduction Act, an individual “(a) is liable, on conviction on indictment, to a fine not exceeding $500,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding ten years, or to both; or (b) is liable, on summary conviction, to a fine not exceeding $250,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding four years, or to both” for not complying with the guidelines set out regarding the duties of the reproduction of a child. A surrogate mother is defined as a woman who carries a fetus conceived through an assisted reproduction procedure which is derived from the genes of a donor or donors, and with the intent of surrendering such child at the time of birth (AHRA, 2004). However, there is still ambiguity felt between surrogates and parents related to what the law sets out as their legal duties in conceiving a child, and this is also pertinent in relation to the context of a working contract. Having said that, this essay aims at addressing the unclarity, pointing to the main arguments in favor of the Assisted Human Reproduction Act, and how the decision was aimed to safeguard the rights of those involved; including the child, and to prevent culpability issues within the health sector and many others linked to the overall process.

Laws are legislated and enforced for the mere purpose of protecting all individuals in a society by stating what is and what is not acceptable behavior. Though it is impossible for these legislative decisions to please every single individual in a society, these governs are passed in morality of the thousands of elected parties in charge. Commercial surrogacy is a current complex issue that evokes strong moralistic response. Commercial surrogacy takes away the childbearing element in the reproductive period for individuals looking to have or extend a family. It has opened the doors for many who cannot bear children of their own though this behavior has also raised many concerns about the appropriate scope of the market. This “method for acquiring children” is more commonly objected because the children and women’s reproductive ability are being treated as a commodity. Summed up through Elizabeth S. Anderson’s article, “Is Women’s Labor a Commodity?” children are buyer durables and women are baby factories (Anderson 82). Anderson communicates commercial surrogacy children as commodities stating how this “market” that these children are born into expresses attitude that endorses market norms as opposed to ‘norms of parental love”(Anderson 76). Anderson focuses her paper towards the manipulation, alienation, and exploitation of women that commodifies women’s reproductive capacities. Through Anderson’s argument and her perceptive relations of this market to alienation,

In today’s society, surrogacy is becoming a more and more popular and common issue. For many couples who cannot or unwilling to carry babies by themselves, surrogacy is the first choice to have their own babies and build a family. The legality of surrogacy is different for every country. There are countries that consider the birth mother as the legal mother while there are those that don't. Besides, a lower price of surrogacy in developing countries drives them to find surrogate mother overseas. Thus, international

Some view altruistic surrogacy as a form of exploiting the surrogate. There is no monetary compensation to woman placing her health and well-being on the line for another’s benefit. However, it can also be held that the woman knowingly entered into the agreement with full disclosure of the risks and benefits to her health and body. Again, autonomy and justice are extremely prevalent ethical principles to explore when discussing the topic of surrogacy. Same-sex marriage has become a hot topic in the United States in the last few years. The idea of raising a family by homosexual