Your name is on the mortgage. So is your ex’s. And the repayments still come out every month, regardless of who is sleeping where.
That’s the reality that catches most people off guard in the weeks after separation. They expect the legal process to draw a clear line. Pay this, stop paying that, move on. Instead, the mortgage sits there, unchanged, while the rest of your life is falling apart around it.
The confusion is understandable. Separation feels like it should reset something. But as far as your lender is concerned, nothing has changed. The contract you both signed is still the contract. That doesn’t mean you’re stuck with no options. It means you need to understand exactly where you stand before you make any decisions, because some of the most expensive mistakes in property settlement happen right here, in this in-between period.
What you’re actually asking, underneath all of it, is this: do I have to keep paying this mortgage, and if I do, will it count for anything later?
This article answers both questions, and explains what you can do right now to protect yourself.
Key Takeaways
- Separation does not change your legal obligation to the bank. If your name is on the mortgage, you remain fully liable for every repayment until the loan is refinanced, discharged on sale, or formally changed.
- Joint and several liability means the bank can pursue either of you for the full debt. If your ex stops paying their share, the bank doesn’t chase them. It chases whoever it can find.
- Missed mortgage payments during separation can damage both borrowers’ credit, regardless of whose fault the arrears are or who is living in the home.
- Mortgage payments you make after separation can be taken into account in property settlement, but only if you document them properly and raise them at the right time.
- Informal agreements about who pays what are better than nothing, but they carry real risk. Written confirmation and legal advice are worth the effort.
- Courts can make interim orders about the mortgage before final property orders are in place, including orders that one party pay the mortgage while they occupy the home.
Who pays the mortgage after separation if our home loan is in both names?
Both of you do. That’s the short answer and, frustratingly, it doesn’t change just because you’ve separated.
When you both signed the home loan, you each agreed to be fully responsible for the debt. Not half each. The whole thing. Your lender does not recognise the concept of “my half” of the repayment. It sees two borrowers, each liable for 100% of the outstanding balance.
In practice, most couples continue making repayments the same way they did before, at least initially. One person might transfer their share into a joint account, or into the other person’s account if they’ve taken over the loan management. That informal arrangement can work for a while.
The problem starts when one person decides, for whatever reason, to stop.
At that point, you’re not just dealing with a dispute between you and your ex. You’re dealing with a lender that doesn’t care about your separation, your children, your income, or the fact that your ex has moved someone else into the house. It cares about the repayment schedule. And if repayments fall short, both of you wear the consequences.
Key Point: The mortgage contract is between you, your ex and the lender. Your separation agreement, however detailed, does not change that contract. Only the lender can release a borrower from their obligation, and they will only do that through a refinance, a sale, or a formal loan variation.
Does separating or getting divorced change who is legally responsible for the mortgage?
No. Separation changes nothing in the eyes of your lender.
Divorce changes nothing either. These are family law events. They affect your relationship status and your property rights as between you and your ex. They have no effect on the loan contract you signed with the bank.
The only things that can change your mortgage obligation to the lender are:
- Refinancing the loan into one person’s name alone
- Selling the property and discharging the loan from the proceeds
- The lender formally agreeing to release one borrower from the loan
A property settlement order from the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia can require one of you to refinance or sell. It can require one of you to indemnify the other against future liability. But until that order is made and acted on, the original loan document governs what the bank can demand from each of you.
This is one of the most important distinctions in property law after separation. The court tells you what to do with each other. The bank doesn’t have to follow that.
Key Point: A consent order or court order in a property settlement is not the same as a release from the mortgage. If your ex is ordered to refinance the home loan into their name and they don’t do it, your name is still on that loan until they actually complete the refinance.
What if the mortgage is only in my name or only in my ex’s name?
If the mortgage is in your name only, you’re the sole borrower. Your ex has no legal obligation to the lender at all, regardless of whether they live in the property or contributed to repayments during the relationship.
That feels deeply unfair when you’re the one making repayments on a house your ex is living in. But it’s how the loan works. The court, however, sees it differently.
In a property settlement, the court looks at the history of contributions to the asset, not just whose name is on the debt. If you’ve been solely servicing a mortgage for a property your ex lives in, that’s a relevant contribution. It doesn’t automatically entitle you to a larger share, but it is a factor.
If the mortgage is only in your ex’s name and you’re living in the house, your ex may try to argue that you should contribute to the repayments as a condition of staying. They can’t force that through the bank. But they can raise it in property settlement negotiations, and the court may consider their unilateral payment of the mortgage a contribution in your ex’s favour if it goes unreciprocated for a long time.
The practical point: whoever is living in the property should be contributing something to its costs, even if it’s not the full mortgage payment. What that looks like depends on your individual financial positions, child support arrangements, and what’s being negotiated in the broader settlement.
Expert Tip: If the mortgage is only in your name but your ex is living in the property, document every repayment you make. The date, the amount, the account it came from. That record may matter significantly when property settlement is finalised.
I’ve moved out. Do I still have to pay the home loan?
Yes, if your name is on the loan.
Moving out does not remove you from the mortgage. You can be three suburbs away, three states away, or overseas. The lender doesn’t know and doesn’t care. Both borrowers remain fully liable until the loan structure formally changes.
This comes as a shock to many people. The instinct when you move out is that you’ve left the house, so you’ve left its responsibilities behind. The mortgage doesn’t work that way.
What you have done by moving out is put yourself in a position where you’re likely paying rent somewhere and a mortgage on a property you don’t live in. That’s a genuine financial pressure, and it’s one the court can take into account in property settlement.
If your ex is living in the home and you’re still contributing to the mortgage, you should be documenting those payments and those contributions should form part of your settlement negotiations. You may also be able to negotiate that your ex takes over sole responsibility for mortgage repayments as part of an interim arrangement, recognising that they’re getting the benefit of living in the property.
If you genuinely cannot afford both rent and your share of the mortgage, do not simply stop paying. Talk to a family lawyer first about what interim orders might be available, and talk to your lender about whether any temporary hardship arrangements apply.
Key Point: Moving out does not cancel your mortgage liability. It changes your living costs and strengthens your argument for interim arrangements, but it does not release you from the loan until the property is sold or refinanced.
Who pays the mortgage between separation and property settlement?
In the short term, whoever was paying it usually keeps paying it, at least until a different arrangement is agreed or ordered.
Property settlement takes time. It can take months. In contested matters, it can take years. During that entire period, the mortgage doesn’t pause. The lender expects repayments on schedule regardless of what’s happening in your family law proceedings.
The most common pattern is that the person remaining in the home takes primary responsibility for the repayments, often in lieu of paying rent, with the understanding that this will be factored into the eventual property settlement. That’s a sensible arrangement. But it only works if both parties understand and agree to it, and if someone actually documents it.
The second most common pattern is that both parties continue contributing proportionally from separate accounts, which requires ongoing cooperation. When the relationship is already fractured, that cooperation often breaks down.
If you can’t reach an informal agreement, you have options:
- Ask a family lawyer to negotiate an interim financial arrangement on your behalf
- Apply to the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia for interim orders that specify who is responsible for mortgage repayments pending settlement
- Contact your lender about what’s happening, so that any short-term adjustments can be discussed before payments fall into arrears
The worst outcome is no arrangement and no communication, where both parties assume the other is handling it and neither is.
Expert Tip: Put any agreement about who pays the mortgage in writing, even if it’s just an email exchange confirming what you’ve agreed. If the arrangement later becomes relevant in property settlement, you’ll want evidence of what was agreed and when.
How does joint liability work when one of us stops paying?
When one borrower on a joint mortgage stops paying, the other borrower’s exposure doesn’t halve. It doubles.
That’s what joint and several liability means in practice. The lender can pursue either borrower, or both, for the full amount owing. If your ex stops paying and you don’t make up the difference, the loan falls into arrears. Both of your credit records take the hit. Both of you risk default proceedings.
The lender doesn’t care about the dispute between you. It won’t wait for your property settlement to be finalised. It won’t accept “my ex stopped paying” as a reason to waive arrears fees or hold off on enforcement. It will simply pursue the path of least resistance to recovering the debt.
If you find out your ex has stopped paying, here’s what you do:
- Contact the lender immediately and find out exactly what is owing and what the current status of the loan is
- Do not assume the payments are being made if you are not the one making them
- If you can, make the repayment yourself to keep the loan current, even if that feels deeply unfair
- Get legal advice about recovering those payments through property settlement or interim orders
- Ask your lawyer about whether an urgent application for interim orders is appropriate
Stopping the mortgage from falling into default is more important in the short term than the injustice of paying your ex’s share. You can address the injustice in the settlement. You can’t undo a credit default.
Key Point: If your ex stops paying the mortgage, you will almost certainly need to cover their share to protect your own credit and avoid enforcement action. That may feel wrong. It is wrong. But the remedy is legal, not financial.
What happens if we miss mortgage payments after separation?
The consequences are serious and they fall on both borrowers.
Missed payments accrue arrears, usually with penalty interest. After a number of missed payments, the lender will issue a default notice. If the default is not remedied, the lender can begin enforcement proceedings, which can ultimately result in the property being sold, not by you, and not at a time of your choosing.
Both borrowers’ credit records are affected by missed payments and default listings. That affects each person’s ability to borrow in the future, including to finance their own property after settlement.
Beyond credit, a property in arrears during settlement negotiations complicates everything. It creates urgency, it reduces the asset pool if the lender charges penalty costs, and it can force a sale at the wrong time.
The most important thing to understand is that the family law system cannot protect you from the lender’s enforcement rights. The court can make orders between you and your ex. It cannot tell the bank to wait. Getting on top of arrears, or preventing them in the first place, is always the priority.
Expert Tip: If you are worried about missed payments, contact your lender’s financial hardship team before the account falls behind. Most lenders have a formal hardship process and can temporarily vary repayments. Getting ahead of the problem is always better than responding to a default notice.
Can we agree that one of us pays the mortgage and ‘square up’ later?
Yes. And in practice, this is how many couples manage the in-between period.
One person stays in the home and takes on sole responsibility for the mortgage. Both parties understand that this will be accounted for in the property settlement, either by adjusting the percentage each person receives, or by the person who paid the mortgage being credited for those contributions.
The courts do consider post-separation contributions when dividing property. If you’ve been paying the mortgage for 18 months while your ex lives elsewhere and pays nothing, that is a contribution to the asset pool that the court can take into account.
But there are risks in a “square up later” arrangement:
- If it’s not documented, your ex may dispute what was agreed
- If the settlement takes years, the cumulative payments may be significant and the argument about how they’re treated can become genuinely complex
- Courts don’t automatically credit you dollar for dollar for every mortgage payment. The way contributions are assessed is more nuanced than that
For the arrangement to hold up, you want it in writing. A solicitor can formalise an interim agreement that spells out who pays what and on what basis, so there’s no ambiguity later. That’s a far better position to be in than an informal understanding that your ex remembers differently.
Expert Tip: If one of you is shouldering the mortgage alone while the other has vacated, consider getting that arrangement documented formally. A brief written agreement now can prevent a significant dispute later about what post-separation contributions actually meant.
Does child support or spousal maintenance affect who pays the mortgage?
They’re related, but separate.
Child support is calculated by Services Australia based on each parent’s income and the time the children spend with each parent. It’s designed to contribute to the children’s living costs. It does not directly pay the mortgage, and it doesn’t automatically shift mortgage responsibility from one person to another.
If you’re paying child support and still contributing to a joint mortgage, those are two separate financial obligations. You can’t offset one against the other without an agreement or order specifically addressing that.
Spousal maintenance is different. Where one party cannot meet their own reasonable living expenses after separation, they may be able to apply for spousal maintenance from the other party. In some cases, mortgage repayments on the family home can be considered a maintenance payment if the parties agree, or if the court orders it.
If you’re the higher income earner and your ex is remaining in the home with the children, there may be a basis for the court to order that you contribute to the mortgage as a form of maintenance, or for that contribution to be structured as part of a broader financial arrangement. That’s fact-specific and worth discussing with a lawyer rather than assuming either way.
The main point is that child support, spousal maintenance and mortgage obligations are legally separate. Each needs to be addressed in its own right, even if they’re all being negotiated at the same time.
Key Point: Child support payments do not reduce your mortgage obligations, and mortgage contributions are not automatically treated as child support. These need to be dealt with separately and clearly, preferably with legal advice, to avoid confusion and dispute.
How are mortgage payments after separation treated in the final property settlement?
This is the question most people most want answered, and it doesn’t have a single clean answer.
Post-separation mortgage payments are treated as a contribution to the asset pool. The person who has been paying the mortgage is contributing to maintaining and preserving the value of an asset that will be divided at settlement. That counts. But it counts as a contribution in the overall assessment, not as a line-by-line credit.
The court looks at the full picture: what each person contributed during the relationship, what each person contributed after separation, what adjustments are fair having regard to future needs including the parenting of children. The mortgage payments you’ve made since separation sit within that broader analysis.
There are a few specific things worth knowing:
- If your ex has been living in the property rent-free since separation, the court can consider that as a benefit they’ve received, which may offset some of their claims
- If you’ve been paying the mortgage on a property you don’t live in, that’s a direct out-of-pocket cost that the court can take into account as a post-separation contribution
- The longer the post-separation period, the more significant these contributions become in relative terms
You do not automatically get dollar-for-dollar reimbursement. But you’re not ignored either. The key is that you’ve kept records, you can show what you paid and when, and your lawyer raises it at the right point in the settlement process.
Expert Tip: Keep a clear record of every mortgage payment you make after the date of separation. Bank statements showing the payment, the date and the amount are sufficient. That record becomes evidence of your post-separation contribution.
What if I can’t afford my share of the mortgage now that we’ve separated?
This is one of the most common and most distressing situations after separation, and you’re not alone in it.
Two people who could afford one home together often can’t afford to run two households on the same income. Add the costs of separation itself and the financial pressure can be severe. The mortgage doesn’t pause while you work out what to do.
Your realistic options are:
Talk to your lender first. Most lenders have a hardship team and a formal process for customers facing financial difficulty. They can sometimes offer a temporary repayment reduction, a switch to interest-only, or a short-term payment pause. They would rather negotiate than deal with a default.
Talk to your ex. If one person is genuinely unable to contribute, an agreement that temporarily adjusts the split, with clear documentation, is better than the loan falling into arrears.
Get interim orders. If you can’t agree and the situation is urgent, you can apply to the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia for interim financial orders. The court can order one party to make mortgage repayments, pay occupancy costs, or pay spousal maintenance in a way that addresses the mortgage. These aren’t quick, but they’re available.
Consider an agreed sale. If neither of you can carry the mortgage, selling the property and dividing the proceeds may be the most practical resolution, even if it’s not what either of you wanted. An agreed sale avoids the cost and delay of litigation and puts you both on firmer financial ground faster.
What you should not do is simply stop paying without any arrangement in place. That risk belongs to both of you, and the consequences are serious.
Expert Tip: If you genuinely can’t afford the repayments, contact your lender’s hardship team the same week. Frame it as a relationship breakdown causing financial difficulty. Most lenders have procedures for exactly this situation, and the earlier you contact them, the more options you’ll have.
Can the bank force the sale of our home if we separate?
Yes. Not because of the separation itself, but because of what happens to the loan.
If mortgage repayments stop or fall significantly into arrears, and the lender’s enforcement steps are not addressed, the lender can ultimately seek to take possession of the property and sell it to recover the outstanding debt. That process takes time and involves formal notices and legal proceedings, but it is available to the lender as a remedy.
The critical point is that the bank doesn’t need your consent, your ex’s consent, or a family court order to do this. It has its own rights under the mortgage contract.
This is why letting the loan fall into default during a property settlement dispute is so damaging. You may be fighting hard to keep the house, but if the bank takes enforcement action in the meantime, that decision is taken out of your hands entirely.
The family court can, in appropriate cases, make urgent orders to prevent one party from taking steps that would harm the asset pool, including orders about the management of the mortgage. But the better position is always to keep the loan current while you negotiate, rather than relying on the court to prevent the bank from acting.
Key Point: The bank does not need to wait for your family law proceedings to conclude before it takes enforcement action. Keeping the loan current, even if imperfect, is almost always better than allowing it to fall into default while you wait for settlement.
What are my options with the mortgage when we eventually divide property?
When property settlement is finalised, there are three main paths for the mortgage:
One person keeps the home and refinances. The person retaining the property applies to refinance the loan solely in their name, releasing the other party from the mortgage. The lender assesses them as a sole borrower. If they can’t service the loan alone, they may not be able to take this path regardless of what the court orders.
The property is sold and the loan is discharged. The home is sold, the mortgage is paid out from the proceeds, and the remaining equity is divided according to the settlement. This is the cleanest resolution and removes both parties from the mortgage completely.
The loan continues jointly for a fixed period. In some cases, parties agree or a court orders that the property continue to be owned and mortgaged jointly for a defined period, often to allow children to stay in the family home until they finish school. That requires ongoing cooperation and a clear agreement about who pays what and how equity is eventually divided.
The right option depends on each person’s borrowing capacity, the size of the equity pool, the children’s living arrangements and what’s been agreed or ordered in the broader settlement. A family lawyer and a mortgage broker working together can help you understand what’s actually achievable for your situation.
Expert Tip: Before property settlement is finalised, it’s worth getting a preliminary indication from a lender or mortgage broker about what you could refinance on your own. Knowing whether you can service the loan alone shapes what outcome you can actually achieve in negotiations.
How long will this take and what should I be doing with the mortgage in the meantime?
Property settlements vary widely. An agreed settlement with consent orders might be finalised within a few months. A contested matter that goes to trial can take two years or more. During all of that time, your mortgage keeps running.
Here’s what you should be doing while you wait:
Keep paying. If you can afford it, keep the mortgage current. The cost of default is greater than the injustice of overpaying temporarily.
Document everything. Every payment you make after the date of separation should be recorded. Bank statements are sufficient. Keep them somewhere accessible.
Protect your redraw and offset accounts. If your home loan has a redraw facility or offset account and both parties have access to it, either of you could withdraw funds. Get legal advice about whether it’s appropriate to put restrictions on that access.
Notify your lender. Let them know you’ve separated. This allows them to update contact details and means both parties receive correspondence about the account. Ask about any account restrictions you can put in place.
Don’t close joint accounts unilaterally. That creates its own problems and can be raised against you in proceedings.
Get early legal advice. The sooner you understand your position, the more options you have. Waiting until the situation has deteriorated, whether that means arrears, a credit default, or a dispute about who paid what for the last two years, narrows everything.
If you’d like to talk through your mortgage and property situation with the C + K Family Lawyers team, we offer a confidential initial chat with no obligation. Getting clear on where you stand costs nothing and is often the most useful thing you can do this week.
Key Point: The in-between period, between separation and property settlement, is where the most preventable damage happens. Not because of the law, but because people wait, assume, and don’t document. The practical steps you take now shape what’s available to you later.
What am I entitled to if I’ve been paying more of the mortgage since we separated?
Your post-separation mortgage contributions are a relevant factor in the property settlement. They don’t convert automatically into a larger percentage of the asset pool, but they are taken into account as part of the court’s overall assessment of contributions.
The court considers all contributions, financial and non-financial, made during the relationship and after it. If you’ve been making sole mortgage repayments on a jointly owned property since separation, that’s a direct financial contribution to preserving an asset. The court can adjust the division of the property pool to reflect that.
What you’re not entitled to is a straightforward reimbursement outside the settlement process. You can’t send your ex an invoice for half the mortgage and expect the court to collect it like a debt. The remedy is built into how property is divided overall.
Raise it. Make sure your lawyer knows exactly what you’ve paid since the date of separation, for how long, and whether your ex has contributed anything. That information shapes the submission made on your behalf.
Expert Tip: Post-separation contributions, including mortgage payments, are most useful when they’re raised systematically, not as a grievance, but as a factual record of what you’ve paid, what the property is worth, and what a fair outcome looks like given that history.
How do the kids’ living arrangements affect who pays the mortgage?
They’re often connected in practice, even though they’re legally separate questions.
The children’s living arrangements don’t determine who pays the mortgage. But they do shape the overall picture that the court considers when looking at property and maintenance.
If the children are primarily living in the family home with one parent, there’s often a strong argument for that parent to remain in the home, at least in the short term, to maintain stability for the children. If that parent can’t afford to service the mortgage alone, the court can consider whether the other parent should contribute, either as spousal maintenance, as an interim order, or as a factor in the eventual property division.
Some parents structure their arrangements so that whoever has the children more of the time stays in the home and the other parent contributes to the mortgage as a form of financial support, alongside child support. That’s not automatic, but it’s a reasonable framework to put to the other party in negotiations.
The connection between where the children live and who pays the mortgage is real and worth discussing with a family lawyer, because getting that interim arrangement right often reduces conflict and financial pressure for both parties while settlement is being worked out.
Key Point: The children’s living arrangements don’t directly determine mortgage responsibility, but they are part of the broader picture the court considers. If the children are living in the family home, there is often a basis to negotiate a contribution arrangement that accounts for that.
Who should I talk to first: the bank, my ex, or a family lawyer?
All three. But not necessarily in that order.
Talk to a family lawyer first if you can. Understanding your legal position before you have any significant conversation with your ex or the bank means you go into those conversations knowing what matters, what your options are, and what you shouldn’t agree to without advice. Many people make arrangements with their ex or their bank in the first days after separation that create real problems later.
If the mortgage is at immediate risk of falling into arrears, call the bank’s hardship team as a matter of urgency. Don’t wait. The sooner you notify them of your situation, the more options they can offer. You don’t need to have the property settlement sorted before you call.
Your ex is a conversation worth having, but it’s worth having it once you know what you’re willing to agree to and what you need documented. If things are amicable, a direct conversation about mortgage responsibilities in the interim period can save everyone time and money. If they’re not amicable, have that conversation through your lawyers.
If you’re ready to talk through your mortgage and property situation, contact C + K Family Lawyers for a confidential, no-obligation initial conversation. We’ll help you understand where you stand and what your options are.
Expert Tip: Before you agree to any arrangement with your ex about who pays the mortgage or who stays in the house, get at least a brief legal opinion on whether the terms you’re about to agree to are fair and whether they’ll hold up. A short call now can prevent a long dispute later.
Frequently asked questions
Can I just stop paying the mortgage after separation to force a resolution?
It’s a tempting thought and a genuinely bad idea. If you stop paying, the loan falls into arrears. Both borrowers’ credit is affected. The lender can begin enforcement proceedings. And it’s unlikely to speed up your property settlement. The court may also view unilaterally stopping mortgage payments poorly when assessing your conduct during the settlement process. Keep the loan current while you pursue a resolution through legal channels.
My ex is living in the house and paying nothing. What can I do?
You have several options. You can negotiate a formal interim arrangement where your ex takes over the mortgage repayments as an occupancy cost. You can apply for interim orders requiring your ex to contribute to household expenses including the mortgage. You can raise this in property settlement negotiations as a factor affecting how the asset pool is divided. A family lawyer can advise on which approach is most appropriate for your situation.
What happens to the mortgage if my ex and I can’t agree on anything?
If you genuinely cannot reach any agreement and both the property and the mortgage are at risk, you can apply to the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia for orders. The court has broad powers to make orders about the use and occupation of the property, financial contributions to the mortgage, interim spousal maintenance, and ultimately the sale or transfer of the property. It’s not quick, but it’s available.
Does it make a difference whether we’re married or in a de facto relationship?
For mortgage obligations, no. Your liability to the lender is governed by the loan contract, not your relationship status. For property settlement, the legal framework is the same whether you were married or in a de facto relationship of at least two years. The same court, the same principles, the same process.
How does property settlement actually affect the mortgage if the court makes an order?
A property settlement order can require one party to refinance the loan into their name, require a sale of the property, or include an indemnity clause where one party takes responsibility for the debt and agrees to protect the other from any future liability to the lender. However, the order binds the parties. It does not automatically bind the lender. The lender only releases a borrower when the refinance or discharge actually completes. Until then, both names remain on the loan.
How C + K Family Lawyers can help with your mortgage and property settlement
We work with separating couples across Brisbane and the Gold Coast at every stage of the property settlement process, including the early period when the mortgage is live, the settlement is unresolved, and the financial pressure is most acute.
We can advise you on your obligations to the lender, your options for interim arrangements, the strength of your contributions argument, and the most practical path to a final property settlement that reflects everything you’ve put into the relationship and into maintaining the asset since separation.
If your ex has stopped paying the mortgage, if you’ve moved out and you’re unsure what you still owe, or if you simply don’t know where to start, a conversation with our team is the right first step.
Reach out to C + K Family Lawyers for a confidential, no-obligation initial conversation. We’ll help you understand your position and what needs to happen next.
This article is general information only and is not legal advice. Family law outcomes depend on your individual circumstances. For advice about your situation, speak with a qualified family lawyer.
About the Author
Christopher (Chris) Jones is the Principal Lawyer and co-founder of CK Family Lawyers, a Queensland family law firm. Chris advises on divorce, property settlement, parenting arrangements, binding financial agreements, mediation and domestic violence matters. After working in legal environments where clients felt depersonalised and lost in jargon, he co-founded the firm with Krystina Jones on the belief that people deserve family lawyers who genuinely care, and he works directly with his clients throughout their matters.
