What the Australian Family Law Amendment Act 2024 Means for Pet Owners

Australia has long had one of the highest rates of pet ownership in the world, with around 69 per cent of households sharing their home with an animal. For many couples, a pet is as central to family life as anything else. Yet until recently, Australian family law treated pets in much the same way as furniture: as property to be divided, not as living beings whose welfare deserved consideration.

The Family Law Amendment Act 2024 does not completely overturn that position, but it moves the conversation in a significant direction. If you share a pet with a partner in Australia, whether you are planning ahead or already navigating a separation, here is what you need to know.

What the Act actually says about pets

The Family Law Amendment Act 2024 was passed by the Australian Parliament and commenced in June 2025. Its primary focus is on reforming how the Family Court approaches property settlements, parenting arrangements and the general conduct of family law proceedings.

Pets are not addressed in a standalone provision. What the Act does is broaden the welfare considerations courts must take into account when making orders relating to the family unit. This creates more room for arguments about an animal's wellbeing and caregiving history to be raised and heard, even if the court is not formally required to treat a pet as it would a child.

In practice, this means that evidence of who has been caring for a pet, who has attended vet appointments, who manages the animal's daily routine and who has the stronger ongoing bond, carries more weight in Australian proceedings than it did before the Act came into force.

Why this matters for separating couples

Before the Act, Australian courts resolving pet disputes applied a straightforward property analysis: who owns the animal, and how does that asset factor into the overall settlement? Caregiving history was largely irrelevant to that calculation.

The shift introduced by the Act aligns Australia more closely with developments elsewhere. In England and Wales, the Fi v Do ruling in December 2024 established that a judge could place caregiving above financial ownership when deciding who keeps a shared pet. In British Columbia, Canada, a January 2024 amendment to family law requires courts to consider an animal's wellbeing explicitly. Australia is now moving in the same direction.

For separating couples, this has a practical implication: if you have been your pet's primary carer, that history is now more legally relevant than it was. But it only counts if you can demonstrate it. A verbal account of who fed the dog each morning is not evidence. Contemporaneous documentation is.

Contested pet disputes already account for more than 30 per cent of divorce cases in some Australian states, and complex cases can cost upwards of AU$50,000 in legal fees. The Act gives courts more tools to resolve these disputes with welfare in mind, but it does not make them cheaper or faster. The strongest position remains one where both parties have a documented agreement in place before any dispute arises.

What counts as evidence of caregiving in Australia

Whether you are preparing for a potential dispute or simply want to protect your position, the same principle applies: documentation made at the time is worth far more than accounts reconstructed after the fact.

Useful evidence includes vet records showing who attended appointments and authorised treatment; financial records showing who paid for food, insurance and veterinary care; grooming, training and boarding records; and a consistent daily care log recording walks, feeds, medication and other activity.

Pawsettle's Caregiver Log lets you build exactly this kind of timestamped record, organised by activity type and exportable as a PDF report. It is available to Plus users and accessible from anywhere, including Australia.

Storing key documents, vet letters, vaccination records, insurance certificates, in one place also matters. Pawsettle's Document Vault keeps those records accessible and organised, with optional expiry reminders for time-sensitive documents like insurance renewals.

What the Act means if you are not yet separating

The most useful time to act is before any disagreement arises. A written agreement created while both parties are on good terms is significantly easier to put in place than one negotiated under the pressure of a separation.

A Pet Parenting Agreement sets out how care is shared, how decisions are made and what happens if the relationship ends. It does not require a solicitor or mediator to create. It gives both parties a clear reference point and reduces the likelihood that a dispute over a pet becomes a dispute in court.

For couples getting a pet together, a Petnup created at the outset, before any complications arise, is the clearest statement of intention either party can make. Given that 69 per cent of Australian households own a pet and contested disputes are rising year on year, the case for putting something in writing is stronger than it has ever been.

The direction of travel

The Family Law Amendment Act 2024 is part of a broader shift in how English-speaking legal systems think about animals in the context of family breakdown. The underlying principle, that the welfare of a living creature deserves consideration beyond a simple property valuation, is gaining ground in Australia, the UK, Canada and parts of the United States.

That shift does not make disputes disappear. It makes caregiving history more relevant, which in turn makes documentation more valuable. Whether you are in the early stages of a relationship, sharing a pet with a long-term partner or already navigating a separation, the practical response is the same: keep records, put agreements in writing and do not wait until things become difficult.

Pawsettle is a pet documentation and planning tool, not a legal service. Nothing in this article constitutes legal advice. Australian family law is complex and varies by state and territory. If you are involved in a dispute over a shared pet, please consult a qualified Australian family lawyer.

Create a Pet Parenting Agreement or start your Caregiver Log at app.pawsettle.co.uk. Free to start, no payment details required.