13 Aug How to keep your high-profile separation and divorce private
Separation is a deeply personal experience, and for many people, maintaining their privacy is an important priority. While Australian family law includes significant protections around confidentiality, there are also practical steps you can take to minimise unnecessary publicity and protect sensitive personal and financial information throughout the process.
Separating or divorcing is always deeply personal. If you’re a well-known couple, you have a high-net worth or complex settlement, keeping your separation confidential and private may feel even more important. However, privacy concerns aren’t limited to celebrities. Business owners, professionals, community leaders, teachers, medical practitioners and anyone who wants to protect their children or their reputation may be keenly concerned about keeping their information private.
Everyone is protected by the same legal privacy protections under Australian law, regardless of whether you’re well known or not. However, there are also practical steps that can help protect your confidentiality throughout the separation process. Here’s how you can better keep your separation private, discreet and confidential.
Are divorce proceedings confidential in Australia?
Divorce proceedings in Australia are certainly not 100% secret. Under the Family Law Act 1975 (Cth), family law matters are generally heard in open court, reflecting the principle of open justice, which aims to make sure that courts remain transparent and accountable to the Australian public.
In addition, when the Family Court hears divorce proceedings, they usually do occur in open court, and this means that members of the public can attend those hearings unless the Court orders otherwise.
However, the law also restricts how information from those proceedings can be shared outside of the courtroom, by making it an offence to share any information from the proceedings that identifies a child or a witness (except in limited circumstances) in media reports, online posts or other public communications. People who breach this can be subject to criminal penalties.
These privacy protections aim to balance the need for openness within the Court system with protecting deeply personal information about a marriage, children and finances.
Additional protections
There are also additional protections under the Act and under the Family Law Amendment Act 2024.
- Protected confidences. Some types of confidential communications can be treated as ‘protected confidences’, including:
- counselling records and therapy notes
- communications with family violence services
- communications with sexual assault services
- certain health and medical information, where it forms part of a professional, confidential relationship.
If this kind of material is subpoenaed or sought to be used as evidence, a party can now ask the Court to make an order protecting this sensitive information. The Court must weigh up whether disclosing the records is likely to cause harm to the person (or to a child) against how useful the information would be to deciding the case.
Judgements are anonymous.When the Court publishes judgements it usually makes them anonymous. They’ll refer to the parties by pseudonyms and details like children’s names and dates of birth are removed, and locations or property identifiers are often replaced with non-identifying information.
3. Public access to records is tightly controlled. Most Court records are not freely available to the general public, though a party to a matter can certainly request access to their own file.
When you might have greater privacy concerns during a separation
Though anyone going through a divorce or separation has valid reasons to want to keep their matters private, some individuals face greater practical and emotional privacy risks during a separation.
- Professional reputation – People whose careers depend on their reputation staying untarnished and being able to maintain public trust, such as medical professionals, business owners or lawyers, often worry that details of their separation could affect how colleagues, clients or patients perceive them.
- Public figures and community roles – For public figures, such as those who are well-known in a sport, politicians and other public figures, even rumours or partial information about their family law matter can attract media attention or online commentary, and increase the risk of reputational damage or intrusion into their private lives.
- Matters involving children – Where children are involved, parents naturally want to protect them from exposure to conflict, gossip or media attention.
- Survivors of family or domestic violence – Where there are safety concerns, coercive control or systems abuse, privacy is closely linked to feeling safe, not just to reputation or discomfort. Protecting sensitive information can help reduce opportunities for ongoing harassment, intimidation or misuse of court processes.
- People with overlapping legal matters – Where there are parallel criminal, child protection or professional-disciplinary processes, parties can be more concerned about how information from family law proceedings might be perceived or misused in those other forums.
Practical ways to keep your separation as private as possible
Despite the privacy protections in place, sometimes information is at risk of coming out publicly. For example, information can circulate informally within families, schools or social networks, and the media can sometimes deduce who the judgments are about despite a Court’s best efforts.
Taking steps to preserve your privacy from the outset can help reduce unnecessary stress and allow you to focus on reaching a resolution. Here are some additional steps we suggest taking if privacy concerns are looming large in your separation matter:
Work with a family lawyer early
One of the best ways to protect your privacy is to seek legal advice as early as possible. A family lawyer can help you avoid common mistakes, such as sharing sensitive information with the wrong people, making emotional social media posts or communicating in ways that unnecessarily escalate conflict.
Early legal advice also allows you to develop a clear communication strategy, reduce conflict, protect your privacy and improve the chances of resolving matters without unnecessary public attention from the outset.
Resolve matters outside of Court where possible
Not every family law matter needs to proceed to a final Court hearing. Where it’s possible, it’s a great idea to attempt to resolve any disputes outside of the Court system, such as through negotiation or mediation. This has the benefit of keeping your discussions more private while also reducing the emotional and financial strain of a lengthy legal dispute.
Be careful what you share online
It’s completely natural to want to lean on friends and family during a separation, and to vent any frustrations to them. But it’s important to be mindful of what you share and with whom. Any information you share on social media, in messaging apps or even through mutual friends can quickly spread beyond your intended audience and may later become relevant to your family law matter.
It’s also wise to avoid discussing your finances (or any information about your separation) online. Many parents in particular choose to take extra care with what they post during and after separation, helping to protect both their privacy and their children’s wellbeing.
Protect your financial information
A good practical step to take is to make sure that all your financial information is as protected as possible. Consider updating passwords for your email, online banking, cloud storage and other important accounts, particularly if you’ve shared them previously or if you’ve accessed your accounts on shared devices.
If you own a business or have significant financial assets, it’s also worth taking steps to protect sensitive business records and confidential documents. A family lawyer can advise you on how to do this appropriately while still meeting your legal obligations to provide financial disclosure.
Keep discussions within your trusted advisers
We’ve already talked about not discussing your separation widely. However, you do need trusted advisers who can help you make the best decisions for you. Find those you can rely on, such as a lawyer, accountant, financial adviser, as well as a counsellor and/or psychologist. Remember that your mental and emotional health is just as important, and having someone to talk to who will keep your information 100% confidential is vital.
Consider additional privacy orders
In some limited cases, the Court can make extra orders to further protect your privacy. These can include suppression orders (which stop certain information being reported) and non-publication orders (which restrict the publication of specific details from your case.
These orders are only available in particular circumstances and are not automatically granted. To get one, you must satisfy the Court that the legal requirements are met. For example, you have to show that publication would cause serious harm or undermine the proper administration of justice.
When deciding whether to make a suppression or non-publication order, the Court carefully balances your privacy and safety concerns against the principle of open justice and the public interest in transparent court processes.
How Toomey Family Law can help protect your privacy
At Toomey Family Law, we understand that privacy is an important concern for many clients. We can help you develop a strategy that carefully manages communication, explores confidential dispute resolution where appropriate and protects sensitive personal and financial information throughout your matter.
Where privacy is particularly important, such as for professionals, business owners or high-profile individuals, we tailor our approach to help minimise unnecessary publicity while working towards the best possible outcome for you and your family.
If you’re looking for a team with extensive experience guiding clients through divorce and privacy concerns, reach out to Toomey Family Law today.