Domestic and Family Violence Law
Terra Australis Legal assists clients in domestic and family violence matters in Queensland — acting for aggrieved parties seeking protection and for respondents facing an application.
Protection orders in Queensland are made under the Domestic and Family Violence Protection Act 2012. The proceeding is civil, decided on the civil standard, and an order is not a criminal conviction — but contravening one is a criminal offence carrying up to 120 penalty units or three years’ imprisonment. Terra Australis Legal acts for both aggrieved persons and respondents.
A protection order is a civil order with serious consequences.
Under the Domestic and Family Violence Protection Act 2012 (Qld), a court can make a protection order on the civil standard of proof. It is not a criminal conviction — but a breach is a criminal offence, and an order can affect where you live, your contact with your children, your firearms licence and some kinds of employment.
If you are the aggrieved, we help you seek the conditions you actually need and prepare the material the court will require. If you are the respondent, we work out whether the application should be contested, whether conditions should be negotiated, and what consenting without admissions really means for you.
These matters rarely travel alone. They often run at the same time as parenting proceedings or criminal charges, and decisions in one affect the others. We handle all three areas, so that co-ordination is not left to you.
Detailed guides on the questions we are asked most.
Straight answers to what we are asked most.
Talk to a lawyer, not a call centre.
Tell us what has happened and we will tell you plainly where you stand, what it is likely to cost, and what the next step is.