Under current Australian law, adversarial divorce proceedings are no longer required, with certain limited exceptions. The law also mandates procedures that facilitate the resolution of family disputes without judicial intervention. Court registrars are assigned the task of administering and implementing the nonadversarial legal proceedings, and court counselors, who are trained in the behavioral sciences, conduct mediation sessions with the divorcing couple to facilitate agreement on property settlement and child custody. These proceedings are privileged and may not be used or reported in court. Where an agreement is reached, this may be written and submitted to the court for approval. Once approved, the agreement has the effect of a court order. The law requires that divorcing parties attend a mediation conference before the court is empowered to make an order regarding child custody or property settlement. A total of 109 footnotes are provided.