What FDR costs, in plain terms
We bill for the time your matter takes. There is no single set fee, because no two separations take the same amount of work. The figures below are indicative ranges, per person, to help you plan where your matter is likely to sit.
Under $3,000 per person
At this level, the honest first stop is a government-funded provider such as Relationships Australia or Legal Aid. They offer Family Dispute Resolution at low or no cost, though waiting times can be longer. If your budget is here, a private practice is not where your money goes furthest, and we will tell you so.
Funded services$3,000 to $7,999 per person
This is the heart of what we do: a mostly-agreed separation. The lower end suits a single issue, such as parenting only. The higher end covers both parenting and financial matters. Fees usually include the court documentation, such as Consent Orders for a financial settlement. Binding Financial Agreements are arranged separately.
Most common$8,000 to $19,999 per person
A more involved separation, usually both parenting and financial matters where you do not yet agree on much, but you both still want to stay out of court. This typically takes several sessions and may bring in a third party, such as a child consultant or an accountant for a business valuation.
Complex matters$20,000 or more
Budgeting this much usually means bracing for lawyers and court. For some matters that is the right call. But contested court cases regularly run past $80,000 per person and take 18 to 36 months, and the outcome is decided for you rather than shaped by you. Where there is genuine willingness to move, mediation can often resolve even a substantial matter for a fraction of that.
Court pathIndicative only
These figures are per person and are a guide, not a quote. Every matter is different. Because we work pay-as-you-go, what you actually spend depends on the complexity of your matter and on how both parties engage with the process.
Why pay-as-you-go, and what skin in the game means
We bill for the time a matter takes rather than charging one set fee. That is a deliberate choice. When both people have a stake in keeping the process efficient, reasonableness becomes the cheaper path and entrenchment becomes the expensive one.
Focused, reasonable parties tend to resolve quickly, which keeps the cost at the lower end of the range. Where neither person will move, sessions stretch out, the cost climbs, and a matter can drift toward lawyers and court anyway, at far greater cost in both money and time.
"How much you spend is, in a real sense, up to you and your former partner."
What your fees cover
Your fee covers the practitioner's time across the stages of your matter: the individual intake, the joint sessions, and the preparation of the documents that record what you agree. The discovery call beforehand is free.
What can come out of the process
A Parenting Plan
A written, signed agreement about parenting arrangements. Flexible and easy to change, but not directly enforceable as a court order.
Consent Orders
An agreement turned into court orders, for parenting, finances, or both. The preparation is usually included in the fee for the matters you resolve.
A Binding Financial Agreement
An alternative to financial Consent Orders. Each party needs their own legal advice for it to be binding, so a Binding Financial Agreement is arranged separately from the mediation fee.
A Section 60I certificate
For parenting matters where no agreement is reached, so you can apply to court. Issued by the practitioner in line with the Family Law Act.
If your budget is tight
If a private practice is out of reach right now, that is worth knowing early, because there is a real alternative. Government-funded and subsidised services offer Family Dispute Resolution at low or no cost. They are intended for people who genuinely cannot afford a private practice, so eligibility and fees are income-tested.
Family Relationship Centres
Government-funded centres you can find through Family Relationships Online or the Family Relationship Advice Line on 1800 050 321. Information and individual sessions are free, and the first hour of joint mediation is free per couple. Beyond that, fees are income-tested on a sliding scale, so people on low incomes or holding a Commonwealth concession card generally pay little or nothing.
Relationships Australia
Relationships Australia is a community provider whose mediation fees are set on a sliding scale based on your income. People on low incomes and concession holders pay the least.
Legal Aid
Legal Aid runs lawyer-assisted family dispute resolution conferences, but only where at least one party holds a grant of legal aid. That grant is both means tested, on income and assets, and merits tested, so it is reserved for people who genuinely cannot afford to resolve their matter privately.
Expect a wait
These services are in high demand, and waiting times commonly run to several weeks or months. If your matter is time-sensitive, that delay is the real trade-off for the lower cost. Get on a waitlist early, and do not assume a funded service can move at the pace a private practice can.
How this compares to court
The alternative to resolving matters yourselves is having a court decide for you. Contested family law proceedings regularly run past $80,000 per person and take 18 to 36 months, and at the end a judge makes the decision rather than the two of you.
Family Dispute Resolution keeps the decision in your hands, and most families reach agreement in weeks rather than years. For a sense of how the process runs, see how it works, and for property and finance specifically, see financial settlements.