Ferraro v Ferraro

The applicant, Mr. Ferraro, sought special leave to appeal to the High Court of Australia from a decision of the Full Court of the Family Court. The Full Court had varied an order made by a single judge of that court concerning the division of property between Mr. Ferraro and his wife, the respondent. The case involved the interpretation of section 79(4) of the *Family Law Act 1975* (Cth) in the context of a self-made businessman and a homemaker wife.

The central legal issue before the High Court was whether the Full Court of the Family Court had erred in principle when it intervened to vary the property division order. The applicant argued that the Full Court's decision revealed significant differences in approach compared to the trial judge, particularly concerning the application of section 79(4) of the *Family Law Act*. The Full Court had found that the trial judge's approach, including his ultimate analysis and analogy, "significantly denigrates the wife's contributions" and that the judge had erred in principle by approaching the exercise of discretion contrary to principle.

The Full Court's reasoning, as presented by the applicant, focused on legislative changes to section 79(4) made in 1983, after the High Court's decision in *Mallett v Mallett* (1983), and on what they termed "societal changes" since 1938. The appellate court considered that these changes, particularly the 1983 amendments and contemporary social views, strengthened the concept of marriage as a social and economic unit between equals, giving greater recognition to the contributions of a homemaker and parent compared to direct financial contributions. The Full Court indicated that the legislative history and case law consistently aimed to set aside questions of "fault" and that the concept of the "economic consequences of divorce" had been reinforced.