The Family Court or Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia will treat a matter as urgent if it involves:

• Risk to a child’s safety or wellbeing, including exposure to family violence or neglect
• A threat of relocation, particularly where one parent plans to move a child without the other parent’s consent
• A parent being denied time with a child, in breach of existing orders
• Medical emergencies, such as disputes over treatment decisions for a child
• Imminent risk of asset disposal, which may affect a property settlement outcome

These types of situations often require immediate attention to prevent harm or irreversible consequences.

If you believe your matter is urgent, your lawyer (or you, if self-represented) can file an Initiating Application with the court, along with a supporting Affidavit outlining the urgency and evidence. You must also file a Notice of Child Abuse, Family Violence or Risk if relevant. You will also need to provide a cover letter as to the urgency, outlining, the nature of the application and the basis upon which an urgent listing is required. If proceedings for parenting orders have already been started, you will need to make your urgent application by filing an Application in a proceeding. That will then be considered by a registrar as a matter of priority.

Importantly, you will need to ask the court to list the matter urgently, this can be done by filing a Request for Urgent Listing, or by stating the urgency in your affidavit.

The court will review the documents and decide whether to allocate an urgent hearing date, sometimes within a few days if the situation is serious enough.

In most parenting matters, parties are required to attempt Family Dispute Resolution (FDR) before applying to court. However, urgent situations are one of the exceptions to this rule. If there’s a genuine risk to safety or wellbeing, the requirement to attend FDR may be waived. The court will prioritise the best interests of the child and any evidence of risk when deciding whether to grant the urgent orders.

If you believe your situation qualifies as urgent, it’s important to get legal advice as soon as possible. Time is often critical. A family lawyer can help you prepare the necessary documents and advocate for the court to hear your matter quickly.