Although parental responsibilities are at the heart of reforms to Part VII of the Family Law Act, very little is known about what Australians, and particularly divorced parents who are directly affected by the law, think parents should do for their children. Even less is known about public opinion on the responsibilities of parents who are separated or divorce, live in a de facto relationship, or have never lived together. In this article, the authors provide background information to the Family Law Reform Act and outline the objectives and principles of Part VII of the Act. The article is based on the authors' publication entitled, 'Evaluation of the Impact of Part VII of the Family Law Reform Act 1995: public attitudes to parental responsibilities and children's rights after parental separation', in which they report on a national survey that sheds light on what Australian's think about parental responsibilities.