In 2013 Tasmania’s school system will change from having three terms to four terms each year.

This change could affect any Family Court or Federal Magistrates Court orders or a parenting plan currently in place concerning where your children will spend their school holidays.

Do I need to change my orders or parenting plan?
Some orders or parenting plans refer to how time will be spent during specific school holidays using terms like “the May/June school holidays” or “September school holidays”.

Such orders or plans could cause problems if holidays do not fall in those times or because they do not take in to account the additional term holidays.

Other orders or parenting plans refer only to how much time each parent will spend with the children during school holidays and not when the holidays are.

An order or parenting plan that states something like “for half of all school holidays as agreed between the parties” may well be broad enough not to be affected by the change in school terms.

Orders or parenting plans with specific wording may need to be changed to avoid any confusion or disagreements over when time is to be spent between the children and each parent.

Where can I get help?
If you are not sure about your current court orders or parenting plan please feel free to contact us for an opinion on whether or not they need amending.

Tip: make sure that you have your orders or parenting plan handy when you call us so that we know exactly what your orders or parenting plan says.