Commonwealth Consolidated Regulations

FAMILY LAW RULES 2004 - RULE 13.01

             (1)  Subject to subrule (3), each party to a case has a duty to the court and to each other party to give full and frank disclosure of all information relevant to the case, in a timely manner.

Note:          Failure to comply with the duty may result in the court excluding evidence that is not disclosed or imposing a consequence, including punishment for contempt of court. This Chapter sets out a number of ways that a party is either required, or can be called upon, to discharge the party's duty of disclosure, including:

(a)    disclosure of financial circumstances (see Division 13.1.2);

(b)    disclosure and production of documents (see Division 13.2.1); and

(c)    disclosure by answering specific questions in certain circumstances (see Part 13.3).

             (2)  The duty of disclosure starts with the pre-action procedure for a case and continues until the case is finalised.

Note:          The duty of disclosure applies to a case guardian for a child and a person with a disability (see subrule 6.13(2)).

             (3)  This rule does not apply to a respondent in an application alleging contravention or contempt.