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Recorded Webinars

Recorded Interactive Webinar: Hidden Assets in Family Law: Urgent Strategies for Property Disputes

Suspected asset concealment remains one of the most disruptive and strategically complex issues in family law property disputes. For experienced practitioners, the challenge is not identifying the obligation of disclosure, but knowing when and how to move quickly, what evidence is
PRESENTED BY John Spender Principal - Kennedy Partners , Melbourne

Date/Time

About the Webinar

Suspected asset concealment remains one of the most disruptive and strategically complex issues in family law property disputes. For experienced practitioners, the challenge is not identifying the obligation of disclosure, but knowing when and how to move quickly, what evidence is sufficient to justify intrusive relief, and how to protect a client’s position without overreaching. This session examines advanced forensic and procedural strategies for dealing with hidden assets and deliberate non-disclosure in contested property matters. It will explore:

  • How courts approach the duty of full and frank disclosure in practice, and when breaches materially affect outcomes
  • Common concealment techniques encountered in modern property disputes, including asset transfers, cash withdrawals, third-party arrangements and manufactured liabilities
  • Practical forensic steps to preserve and uncover evidence, including document preservation strategies, financial account monitoring and targeted evidentiary gathering
  • The use of injunctive relief under the Family Law Act 1975 to restrain dealings with assets, including when interim or final orders are realistically available
  • Ex parte applications in urgent cases: evidentiary thresholds, disclosure obligations and managing the risk of adverse consequences
  • The consequences of non-compliance, including cost orders, adverse inferences and adjustments in the property settlement outcome
  • Strategic judgment calls when advising clients who suspect concealment, including timing, proportionality and settlement leverage

Presented By

John Spender
Principal, Kennedy Partners Melbourne, Vic

John is a partner of Kennedy Partners.  He is recognised throughout the Melbourne family law community as a leading family lawyer and has expertise in all areas of family law, including complex parenting and property disputes, financial and child support agreements, and international matters involving forum and jurisdictional disputes.

John has been practising in family law since 1993.  After working in various firms, including a major eastern suburbs law firm in Melbourne, he joined Kennedy Wisewoulds (as the firm then was) in 2007, and became a partner of the firm in 2012.

John has been an accredited family law specialist since 2003. He has been a member of various committees of the Family Law Section of the Law Institute of Victoria since 2003 chairing the Maintenance and Property Sub Committee between 2011 and 2018 and the Courts Practice Committee from 2019 to 2022.

John was a sessional teacher and marker within the family law elective of the Graduate Diploma in Legal Practice Course with the Australian National University between 2011 and 2016. He has been a sessional lecturer and tutor at Deakin University since 2021.

John is regularly sought out by legal publications and continuing professional development (CPD) providers to contribute to the pool of discussions around the interpretation, and evolving nature, of the court’s approach to resolving family law disputes. He was a consulting editor as to family law precedents for LexisNexis between 2013 and 2015. In June 2019, John co-organised and presented at a family law conference in Malta, involving judicial officers, lawyers and psychologists from each of Malta, Australia and the United States.

As part of John’s membership of committees of the Law Institute of Victoria, he has been involved in law reform. He was the principal author of a submission to the Victorian Attorney-General in 2004 advocating for the registration of same sex relationships, which legislation was enacted in 2008. Again, in 2015, he contributed significantly to a submission to the Commonwealth about proposed amendments to the law concerning financial agreements. By reason of his long involvement in and commitment to the family law community through such committee work, in May 2019 was honoured with a Certifcate of Service from the Law Institute of Victoria and a Distinguished Service Award from the Law Institute of Victoria in 2023.

John is well respected throughout the Melbourne family law community for his practice, knowledge, and approach to family law. Since 2016, John has been annually recognised by Doyle’s Guide to the Australian Legal Profession.

John is a member of the Law Institute of Victoria, the Family Law Section of the Law Council of Australia and the Association of Family and Conciliation Courts. He has been a Fellow of the International Academy of Family Lawyers (“IAFL”) since 2015 and the President-Elect of the Asia-Pacific Chapter of the IAFL since February 2024.

Who Should Attend?

This webinar is suitable for lawyers practising in family law – Australia wide. This webinar is for practitioners with some knowledge in this area and looking to improve their knowledge.

CPD Information

Lawyers can claim up to 1 CPD unit/point – substantive law. This webinar has been designed to run for 1 hour, however, webinar lengths can vary depending on the level of questions and discussion.

OPTIONAL ONLINE QUIZ

We will be adding an optional online quiz to the recording of this webinar to make it interactive in terms of the type of CPD that can be claimed. Upon completion of the quiz the successful registered user will receive a CPD certificate confirming completion and the CPD units/points/hours earned. The online quiz will be available with the recording – typically within 1 to 2 days of the live webinar being held.

WA lawyers – Please note that TEN is unable to verify your completion of recorded webinars to the Legal Practice Board of WA. TEN is an accredited provider.

While TEN takes all reasonable care to include accurate and up-to-date information regarding CPD category classifications and compliance obligations, information regarding CPD point allocation are provided as a guide only. Allocation of CPD points is subject to the CPD requirements of your jurisdiction, personal circumstances and professional requirements. You are solely responsible for determining whether a particular product is appropriate for your CPD requirements.

Enquiries/Assistance

If you need assistance or have an enquiry, please do not hesitate to contact our Webinar Coordinator, Jason Hooker on (03) 8601 7709 or email: [email protected]

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