Are you thinking about applying to the court for parenting arrangements after separation? In most cases, you’ll need to attend a Family Dispute Resolution Conference with your former partner before filing your application. Unless your situation is urgent or involves family violence, you must obtain a section 60I certificate from the FDRC provider. Understanding these requirements can help you manage your application more effectively.
If you have recently separated and are thinking about making a court application in relation to your children, it is important you are aware of the requirement to attend a Family Dispute Resolution Conference (also known as a ‘FDRC’) with your former partner, before filing your application. The rules around this have been made even stricter since changes were made to the Family Law Act 1975 in June 2025.1
The requirement for you to attend a FDRC before commencing court proceedings is set out in section 60I of the Family Law Act 1975. This section provides that a court application in relation to parenting matters will not be accepted by the court unless:
- you file a certificate from a FDRC provider (known as a section 60I certificate) with your application, or
- after you file your application, the court grants you an exemption from filing a section 60I certificate.
A section 60I certificate is a certificate issued by a FDRC provider which confirms that you attended a FDRC with your former partner and enables you to file a court application in relation to your children. The certificate is valid for 12 months. It can also specify other matters, such as your former partner not making a genuine attempt to resolve the dispute at the FDRC.
What are the exemptions to filing a section 60I certificate?
You can seek an exemption from filing a section 60I certificate in the following circumstance:
- your application is urgent
- there has been child abuse and/or family violence in your matter
- there is a risk of child abuse if you were to delay your application by attending a FDRC
- you and/or your former partner are unable to participate effectively in a FDRC (whether because of an incapacity of some kind, physical remoteness from a FDRC provider or for some other reason), or
- your application relates to an alleged contravention of an existing parenting order, provided the order is less than 12 months old and the person in contravention of the order had behaved in a way that shows a serious disregard for their obligations under the order.
If you seek to rely on one of the above exemptions, you will be required to include evidence of the exemption in support of your application.
Even if your former partner consents to you filing an application without a section 60I certificate, the court will reject your application for filing, unless an exemption applies.
What happens if my former partner refuses to attend a FDRC?
A recent decision of the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia2 confirmed that even if your former partner does not agree to attend a FDRC with you, you need to file a section 60I certificate with your application.
In this case, the mother invited the father to attend a FDRC through their lawyers. The father’s lawyer responded advising that the father was not prepared to attend a FDRC. The mother relied on this correspondence in support of her court application, which did not include a section 60I certificate. The mother’s application was rejected for filing by the court as no section 60I certificate was filed.
If your former partner does not agree to attend a FDRC with you, you should still contact a FDRC provider and ask them to send them an invitation to attend a FDRC with you. If your former partner refuses to attend, then the provider can issue a section 60I certificate detailing their refusal to attend. You will then be able to file your court application.
Key takeaways
Navigating parenting proceedings can be complex and it is important you take steps to comply with section 60I of the Family Law Act 1975, even if your former partner does not agree to attend a FDRC with you. If you are unsure whether an exemption to filing a section 60I certificate applies to your circumstances, or require assistance with your separation, please don’t hesitate to reach out to our experienced Family Law Team.
For guidance on making parenting arrangements for your children, please visit our website for more information.
