Mulligan and Teale

In Mulligan and Teale, heard before Judge Terry, the applicant sought to establish a de facto relationship. The dispute centred on whether the parties had lived together in a de facto relationship for a sufficient period to engage the relevant provisions of the *Family Law Act 1975* (Cth).

The court was required to determine whether the parties had cohabited in a de facto relationship, and if so, for what duration. This involved assessing the nature and extent of their common residence, the existence of a sexual relationship, the duration of their association, and the degree of financial dependence or interdependence between them.

Judge Terry found that while the parties had an association from 1999 to early 2013, with a break in 2010/2011, the common residence was limited to a period of four months in 2006. The court was not satisfied on the balance of probabilities that a sexual relationship continued after August 2006, and noted that the parties had always maintained separate finances with no evidence of financial dependence or support. The court concluded that the criteria for a de facto relationship were not met.

The Initiating Application was dismissed, and further consideration of the respondent's costs application was adjourned.