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Are pets truly members of the family? New provisions relating to ‘companion animals’ in the Family Law Act 1975 (Cth)

Taylor Jobling & Courtney Dolphin

Alternative Law Journal2026https://doi.org/10.1177/1037969x261415974article
ABDC B
Weight
0.50

Abstract

This article considers the new provisions to the Family Law Act 1975 (Cth) (‘ FLA ’) that came into effect in June 2025, which recognise ‘companion animals’ as a category of property to be dealt with upon a relationship breakdown. Animals have not been included in the FLA previously; the new provisions are significant as they now recognise the importance animals have in Australian households. This article explores how the family law courts dealt with pets prior to the recent amendments and provides an overview of the new provisions to the FLA . Discussion of the limitations to these provisions will highlight the ways in which the amendments may fall short of community expectations.

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https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1177/1037969x261415974

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@article{taylor2026,
  title        = {{Are pets truly members of the family? New provisions relating to ‘companion animals’ in the Family Law Act 1975 (Cth)}},
  author       = {Taylor Jobling & Courtney Dolphin},
  journal      = {Alternative Law Journal},
  year         = {2026},
  doi          = {https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1177/1037969x261415974},
}

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Are pets truly members of the family? New provisions relating to ‘companion animals’ in the Family Law Act 1975 (Cth)

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Evidence weight

0.50

Balanced mode · F 0.40 / M 0.15 / V 0.05 / R 0.40

F · citation impact0.50 × 0.4 = 0.20
M · momentum0.50 × 0.15 = 0.07
V · venue signal0.50 × 0.05 = 0.03
R · text relevance †0.50 × 0.4 = 0.20

† Text relevance is estimated at 0.50 on the detail page — for your query’s actual relevance score, open this paper from a search result.