Legal firms could need planners by years end
LEGAL practitioners specialising in family law could be forced to include trained financial planners in their practices by the end of the year. This follows amendments to the Family Law Act that allow couples to split their superannuation on divorce, Macquarie’s technical manager David Shirlow says.
Shirlow says the legislation allowing couples to split their superannuation, introduced last year but due to come into effect from December 28 this year, will mean family lawyers will now have to consider a broader range of issues when settling property between separating spouses.
“Super is being brought directly into the equation now, and other issues outside property settlement are now needing attention, such as tax issues. Lawyers now need to consider when each spouse is going to access their share of the super and how they are going to be treated for tax reasons,” Shirlow says.
Shirlow says the situation could prove an opportunity for some financial planners to build relationships with lawyers.
“I think this new legislation will really make them [family lawyers] more conscious of the need for financial planning expertise. They will either develop it themselves, possibly recruit planners, or outsource services, or build relationships with financial planners with expertise in superannuation.”
One group that has taken steps towards mixing legal consultancy and financial advice is SuperSplitting, a Canberra-based business consulting firm.
The group’s principal, Stephen Bourke, says he has not ruled out aligning SuperSplitting with a financial planning group sometime in the near future.
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