Family Lawyer in Double Bay & Darling Point

International finance and professional services families — senior bankers, fund managers, investment professionals, partners in major firms with international components, and corporate executives with offshore arrangements, whose financial positions often involve deferred remuneration, share schemes, international pension arrangements and holdings in multiple jurisdictions. Cosmopolitan Jewish families with international roots — often second- or third-generation Australian but with strong overseas connections through family, business and education, children studying or working in London, New York or Tel Aviv, and inheritance considerations spanning multiple jurisdictions.

Senior business owners with mature, often international enterprises where succession planning is part of the broader life planning and the business interests are usually the most complex part of the asset pool. Second-marriage situations are common — one or both spouses on a second or third marriage, with substantial pre-marriage assets and adult children from previous marriages, where properly drafted BFAs and halachic prenups are the standard approach. Discreet agunah matters arise where the get is refused or used as leverage and the imperative to maintain discretion is acute given community visibility and international reputational dimensions.

Estate planning for substantial estates with international components is often as important as any active separation matter. And non-Jewish clients: about half the practice is general family law for clients of all backgrounds, drawn by the senior-lawyer-only model and the discretion of Melbourne-based counsel.

Multiple-jurisdiction property holdings are common — Sydney harbourside property plus apartments or houses in London, New York, Tel Aviv, Aspen, the south of France or elsewhere — each with its own market, tax position and legal framework, requiring coordination with overseas lawyers and tax advisers for valuation and treatment under Australian property settlement principles. International tax considerations matter: for clients with US, UK or Israeli exposure, family law transfers can trigger international tax events, and while Australian CGT rollover relief under Subdivision 126-A applies to spousal transfers under court orders or BFAs, it doesn't protect against overseas tax exposure, so coordination with international tax advisers is part of the work.

Foreign court proceedings sometimes run in parallel — an Israeli rabbinical court for the get, US or UK proceedings on property or parenting, English or European proceedings on succession — requiring careful attention to jurisdiction, where particular issues should be pursued, and how the orders of different courts interact. Children with multiple passports raise specific issues around international travel, passport custody and consent that need specific provisions in parenting orders, and some families have children at schools in London, the US or Israel, raising questions about continued international education and fees on separation.

Aliyah or international relocation aspirations are among the most legally complex parenting matters in Australian law and highly fact-specific, so early advice matters for families with genuine international options. Cross-border inheritance is common, with different jurisdictions applying different succession laws — Israeli forced heirship, US estate tax, UK domicile-based inheritance — so estate planning that addresses all relevant jurisdictions is detailed work. The firm has direct working relationships with Israeli lawyers and real estate professionals, and engages appropriate contacts for US, UK and European dimensions on the specific matter.

Settlements here are typically substantial and wide-ranging. Harbourside real estate in Double Bay and Darling Point is among the highest-value in Australia — harbourfront homes with private water access can sit at $20 million or more, standard residential properties have medians in the $4–8 million range, and premium penthouses can reach similar levels — so valuation requires expertise in this very specific high-end market. Family trusts and corporate structures are often sophisticated and multi-layered, with corporate trustees, appointors distinct from trustees, and beneficiary classes spanning generations and jurisdictions; the Family Court has substantial powers to look through them but the analysis is complex.

Business and partnership interests — senior partnership stakes, substantial operating businesses, sophisticated investment structures — require expert evidence, typically forensic accounting plus industry specialists. For senior executives, current salary is often only part of the picture, with long-term incentive plans, restricted stock units, deferred bonuses and option arrangements representing substantial value that needs valuing and treating appropriately. Investment portfolios (listed equities, managed funds, private equity, sometimes hedge funds or property syndicates), substantial superannuation including SMSFs, and international holdings across multiple currencies and legal frameworks all feature.

Art, collectibles and other valuable personal property are common and raise valuation, settlement-treatment and physical-custody questions. Most families have established accountants, financial planners, tax advisers and lawyers, and effective settlement work coordinates with them rather than running in parallel. For matters of this scale, expert evidence is the norm — forensic accountants, business and real estate valuers, international tax advisers, sometimes art valuers — and choosing and instructing the appropriate experts is part of the senior-lawyer role. The court applies the four-step process; for matters of this complexity the work is substantially in the disclosure, the valuation, and the strategic positioning.

A civil divorce ends your marriage under Australian law; a get ends it under Jewish law. They are separate processes and most clients need both. The Sydney Beth Din is at 25 O'Brien Street, Bondi Beach, with senior Dayanim Rabbi Moshe Gutnick and Rabbi Yehoram Ulman handling the religious side. For Double Bay clients, where many are part of Chabad Double Bay's outreach community or have looser institutional connections, the religious dimension still typically matters — the downstream consequences of failing to obtain the get apply regardless of how religious the marriage was. I have coordinated matters through the Sydney Beth Din and work with it directly.

Discretion is often a substantive priority here, not just a preference. The Eastern Suburbs Jewish community is small and tightly networked, and for high-profile finance, media, fashion and business families the social cost of a noisy separation can extend to business relationships, professional reputation and international standing. Choosing a lawyer outside the immediate community adds social distance; resolving matters by agreement (consent orders, properly drafted BFAs, negotiated parenting plans) leaves less of a public record than contested matters; careful drafting of court documents protects personal and financial detail from unnecessary disclosure; limited in-person attendance via Zoom and video-link court appearances keeps the matter low-profile; and working through your existing tax adviser or accountant rather than introducing new parties reduces the circle of people who know. The legal substance of your rights is what it is, but how the matter is conducted can substantially affect what becomes community or professional knowledge.

A halachic prenup commits the husband to ongoing financial support of the wife in the event of separation, contingent on his cooperation with the get process. The Beth Din recognises it, but an Australian court will not unless it's also drafted to satisfy a Binding Financial Agreement under section 90B of the Family Law Act. For Double Bay couples — particularly second marriages, those with substantial pre-marriage or international assets, or those with children from previous relationships — a properly drafted halachic prenup + BFA is often essential, addressing pre-marriage asset protection, halachic obligations including the get, treatment of international assets across jurisdictions, coordination with existing trust structures and estate planning, treatment of business interests, and provisions for children from previous relationships. This is complex drafting; both parties obtain independent legal advice and the document is signed and witnessed well before the wedding.

On logistics: the initial consultation is free, 45 minutes, by Zoom or phone in nearly all cases. I travel to Sydney regularly, with meeting arrangements tailored for clients where discretion is important and no additional charge for Sydney travel. Family law is federal — I am admitted in Victoria and to the High Court of Australia and act in Family Court matters Australia-wide, appearing at the Sydney registry in person or by video link. I coordinate get applications directly with the Sydney Beth Din at 25 O'Brien Street, document witnessing happens locally through a Sydney JP or solicitor or through me on a visit, and ongoing communication is by email, phone and Zoom.