Shepherds Family Law | About Shepherds Family Law

Overview of expertise & experience of Principal, Matthew Shepherd.

family law, divorce, child support, property settlement, mediation, family dispute resolution, separation, custody, child custody, child access, parental responsibility, parenting plan, parenting order, financial agreement, AVO, international family law, collaborative law collaborative family law collaborative practice, family lawyer

473

page-template-default,page,page-id-473,ajax_updown,page_not_loaded,,vertical_menu_enabled,qode-title-hidden,qode_grid_1300,side_area_uncovered_from_content,qode-child-theme-ver-1.0.0,qode-theme-ver-13.1.2,qode-theme-bridge,wpb-js-composer js-comp-ver-5.4.5,vc_responsive

About Matthew

Matthew Shepherd is an expert in solving the legal and financial problems that arise from relationship breakdown – generally without going to Court.

Matthew Shepherd

matthew@shepherdsfamilylaw.com.au

Professional qualifications & expertise:

Practising solicitor since admission in 1990.
Accredited by the NSW Law Society as a family law specialist in 1996.
Nationally accredited mediator since 2010
Registered family dispute resolution practitioner since 2012
Advanced specialist family law property arbitrator since 2016
Member of NSW Law Society Dispute Resolution Committee (2013 to 2029), Family Law Committee (2017 to 2019) and the Law Society Advisory Committee for Specialist Accreditation in Dispute Resolution (2014 – 2016).
Member of:
NSW Law Society,
Family Law Section of the Federal Law Council,
NSW Collaborative Professionals,
Australian Institute of Family Law Mediators and Arbitrators,
The Resolution Institute,
Member of the Relationships Australia Collaborative Practice Group,
Associate of the American Bar Association.
Collaborative family law practitioner including founding member of the Relationships Australia Collaborative Practice Group.
Restorative engagement conference facilitator for Defence Assault Response Taskforce.
Leading Family Law Mediator 2022 and 2023 in the Doyles Guide to the best family lawyers and mediators.

Academic:

Part-time Lecturer in Dispute Resolution Advocacy and Collaborative Law, UTS 2014 – 2019.
Mediation coach and assessor for College of Law, Sydney and Australian Institute of Family Law Arbitrators and Mediators .
Presenter of collaborative practice trainings for Relationships Australia.
Master of Dispute Resolution (Honours). University of Technology Sydney. 2013. UTS Geoffrey Bartholomew Memorial Scholarship winner 2011.
Vocational Graduate Diploma in Family Dispute Resolution. Australian Institute of Relationship Studies. 2012.
Bachelor of Laws. Sydney University. 1989.
Master of Arts. Sydney University. 1987.
Bachelor of Arts. Sydney University. 1983.
Advanced Negotiation Masterclass. Harvard. 2018.

Published writings and conference papers:

“Dealing with difficult people.” Paper given at Legalwise Family Law Conference, Sydney March 2024 with paper published in the August 2024 edition of the Australian Family Law Journal of the Family Law Section of the Law Council of Australia.
“What family law mediators can do when property mediation results in partial but not total agreements.” Paper given at the National Mediation Conference at Wellington, New Zealand in September 2023.
“Options for Clients When Property Mediation Results in Partial But Not Total Agreements.” Article in the May 2023 edition of the Arbitrator and Mediator Journal.
“Family law property arbitration – the first five years and the next five years.” Conference paper given to the NSW Law Society Specialist Accreditation Conference August 2021.
“Family Law Property Arbitration: The First 5 Years.” Conference paper co-presented with Justice Michelle May at the Resolution Institute National Conference July 2021 .
“The new National Family Law Property Arbitration List.” Co-authored with Judge Harman of the Federal Circuit Court. NSW Law Society Journal June 2020.
“Arbitration: Australian Law Reform Report Recommendations.” Australian Family Lawyer Vol 28/2. July 2019.
National Mediation Conference, Canberra April 2019. “Position papers – what’s the point?”
“Family Law Property Arbitration: Progress and Reviews.” Australian Family Lawyer Vol 28/1. April 2019.
“First Judicial Consideration of Family Law Property Arbitration reforms.” article in the NSW Law Society Journal December 2018.
“Family Law Property Arbitration” article in the June 2017 edition of The Arbitrator and Mediator Journal.
National Mediation Conference 2016. Two papers – “Mediating King Lear” and “Aligning the teaching of dispute resolution with principles of effective dispute resolution”
“Child Abduction will continue to happen as Australia increases its international ties.” Sydney Morning Herald, 21 April 2016.
Ausmed Conference, Sydney February 2016. Presentation to health professionals on High Conflict Staff: Mediation and Resolution.
NSW Law Society Journal December 2015 “Institutional Responses to Child sexual abuse: The latest on the proposed redress scheme.”
Resolution Institute Kongress September 2015 paper on “Helping mediators avoid the traps of electronic communication” published in the December 2015 edition of The Arbitrator and Mediator Journal.
The Conversation. 10 March 2015 “When negotiating who should make the first offer” and September 2016 “To a modern audience othello is simply another story of domestic abuse“
LEADR Kongress 2013 conference paper on “Understanding and Working with Lawyers at Mediation”
The Australian Journal of Clinical Hypnotherapy Spring 2007 “Domestic Violence and AVOs: A Legal Guide for Doctors, Psychologists, Counsellors and other Healthcare Professionals.