Work life balance. Three important words we hear all the time and three words that I don’t think should ever be put together. For over 9 years now I have been running a business- one that I started myself to be the ‘master of my own destiny’ and of course to enable me to attain […]
Falling in love is fun, exciting and romantic. It is all the things we dream of and romance novels are made of. And of course then there is falling out of love- it is, as we know, just the opposite. The end of a significant relationship will bring with it fear, grief and sadness and […]
It was 1997 when I decided I wanted to be a lawyer. That was almost 20 years ago now. Just saying that makes me realise that was a really long time ago! In 1997 I was living in sunny Brisbane, in a share house in Annerley and studying to be an Interior Designer. Not a […]
I love a guest blogger and this week my fellow Family Lawyer, Fiona Caulley is sharing her learning on Mindfulness and its application to our daily practice of law. I had the pleasure of hearing Fiona present on this topic last weekend at a conference we were both involved in. I loved it! So much […]
My dear friend Liz is back with another instalment in her life (post divorce) and this time she is hitting us with her recent dalliance with ‘online dating’ after divorce! I will be upfront with you- I was dating before the days of the ‘online’ world really taking over and I found it hard enough then! The thought of now having […]
The first time I heard the term ‘divorce coach’ I am pretty sure I may have rolled my eyes! But that was a while ago, before I met one and before I had any understanding of what a Divorce Coach really is. It makes sense if you think about it- someone who understands what it […]
‘Leadership’. It is a word that is thrown around workplaces all the time but sometimes with so little thought. I am a leader and there are many days when I wish I could sneak into my office, hide behind my desk and leave all that leadership business to someone else! Because being a leader […]
Divorce is one of the most significant grief events many of us will ever suffer. Is it any wonder then, that during divorce, good people suddenly seem to be mad? As a Divorce Lawyer I have seen it all. People who in any other situation are entirely ‘normal’ all of a sudden turn into crazy […]
It is almost Christmas! Such a beautiful time of year (well so the songs say!) and I must say I love Christmas- it is a time when I am with my closest family and friends, holidaying, celebrating and just being grateful for all that the year has thrown our way. But I know that for […]
So last week I shared my new found ‘lack of celebration’ of being busy and the most beautiful things happened. A lot of you commented and shared your similar views- that ‘being busy’ seems to be ‘the norm’ and that perhaps by focusing on how busy we are we are in fact missing out on […]
I don’t know about you but it’s Christmas party season for me. This means lots of professional events and lots of fun and catch-ups, but it also tends to mean lots of conversations with people that I don’t know so well. And at each one of these events lately, the conversation seems to go like […]
Parenting is one of life’s joys, but at the same time is one of life’s challenges. Parenting during separation and divorce is perhaps more of a ‘challenge’ than a ‘joy’. The breakdown of any significant relationship is one of the most difficult grief events many of us will ever experience. It is therefore no wonder […]
This past week I have been enjoying a long awaited family holiday. Oliver, London and I have made our way (along with Ollie’s mum) to Queenstown, New Zealand. It has been beautiful. We have been skiing the slopes, sitting in front of log fires, enjoying lovely dinners out and all that fun holiday stuff. But […]
Whether it was watching my parents, learning myself or helping people every day for the past 15 years fall ‘out of love’ I have come to learn a few things about relationships as a divorce lawyer so this week I thought I would share my 3 biggest learnings.
This week’s post is kindly written by a former client and now dear friend who I have the pleasure of meeting a few times a year to share stories, check in and hear where life is taking her! And last week we spoke ‘Dating’! So what is it like when you start dating again after divorce? Well after a great lunch chat I asked my beautiful friend to share her story with all of you as it reminded me of those silver linings that can come after divorce.
As written for and published in I AM WOMAN Magazine 27 November 2014 L.O.V.E- love! A word that brings with it so many wonderful feelings, memories and dreams. And yet a word that can also create so much pain. Falling in love is beautiful, magical and for some, like a fairy tale. It is the […]
Divorce is bad enough without then having to explain to those you love and even those you barely know just what you are going through. Often the most challenging conversation to be had is with your children. So here are 5 things to keep in mind when you are telling your kids, about your separation.
Almost this time last year Gwyneth Paltrow and Chris Martin hit the front pages of the news with their wacky idea that they were ‘consciously uncoupling’. They were not ‘getting a divorce’ instead they had made a conscious decision to bring their marriage to an end in a positive way. In fact they had untangled their […]
I have a belief that life is a journey. That each of us is living in our own ‘choose your own adventure novel’ and that the decisions we make lead us on new adventures. Just like a novel, we never really know what the ending will be and so it is the path, or the […]
We are living in an environment of significant change in terms of how we, as lawyers, do business. If we don’t start to acknowledge and adapt to change, there is every chance that our roles, as we know them today, will become redundant. Despite the shifts that are occurring in our industry, there are some […]
Today, exactly 6 years ago, I was dancing around a small town hall, with my closest friends and family, celebrating my marriage. It was a remarkable day (save for the rain and yes, I know that is meant to be a sign of good luck) and a day I will always look back on and […]
As most of you know, I heavily advocate for families who are experiencing separation and divorce to do everything they can to stay away from the Family Court process. After 14 years working in the family law system, I have experienced firsthand the difficulties faced by families who find themselves before the Courts. The Court […]
This week I have been asked on a few occasions why I decided on “The Happy Family Lawyer”. It is a funny question as at the time I am not sure I was all that ‘Happy’ and I think I chose the word to remind myself every day of the importance of being just that- […]
What would you do with $100,000? Did you know that the financial outlay for your family to begin and finish a case before the Family Courts here in Australia, will be more than $100,000. This is almost a conservative estimate- I have no doubt that many families have spent many more thousands over the years […]
Almost all of us have had our hearts broken at some stage in our lives. For me, it first happened when I was 16 years of age. I still remember those feelings so well- waking up each morning, those first few seconds when my world seemed okay, before that moment where everything seemed to stop. […]
Clarissa Rayward, The Happy Family Lawyer, is a Specialist Family Lawyer based in Brisbane, Australia. Clarissa is the Director of boutique Family Law Firm, Brisbane Family Law Centre (BFLC). Brisbane Family Law Centre is a multidisciplinary legal practice offering a holistic service to clients experiencing divorce and separation. An onsite team of specialist family lawyers are […]
All is not fair in love and divorce. This morning while trying to drag myself from bed with my almost two year old jumping on my head I managed to hear a headline on TV- “A law firm with a difference- they only represent men. It is the only way that men can get a […]
It is a beautiful rainy Saturday here in Brisbane and I am tucked in my office writing a book pitch! Yep that damn book that seems to be filling my mind, all day, every day. None the less it has been a beautiful couple of hours as I trawl through the random collection of titles […]
