A mother appealed an order that a child be placed in the care of a paternal great aunt, claiming that the judge should have given primary regard to a birth parent or biological parent.  The appeal...

The judge noted that a meaningful relationship is not an optimal relationship.  ...Read More

A mother left a relationship when the son was aged 6 months and moved to a distant location overseas. The judge ordered a shared care arrangement where the boy was to live with his mother and to spend...

A mother alleged that she had been subjected to family violence and took two children aged 8 and 6 years to visit members of her extended family overseas.  The mother returned only because of a court...

Two children aged 8 and 11 years had lived with their mother and spent only sporadic time with their father over a period of 4 years (contact limited involvement).  Evidence was presented that the mother had impeded contact...

The case involved three children aged 14, 12 and 8 years.  The trial judge ordered that parents have shared parental responsibility and that the children live primarily with their mother and spend time with the father.  The...

A trial judge granted sole parental responsibility to one parent and the other parent appealed.  The trial judge found that the two parents had not exchanged information and had not cooperated with each other or told...

The judge commented that orders for equal shared parental responsibility are usually made only when parents have similar views and are able to communicate with and to cooperate with each other (co-parent).  In this case the...

A mother joined for 11 months in a same sex relationship with another woman over the time when her child was born.  The pair separated, and the other woman sought an order for equal shared parental...

The father had arrived in Australia on a visitor’s visa and sought a visa for permanent residency.  The father had been in relationships with two women (Ms A & Ms D) within a 2 year period and...

A couple separated having 2 children aged 11 and 10 years.  The parents agreed their children had observed one physical altercation when police were called.  The children initially spent time with the father while living with the mother. ...

A couple had a son aged 9 years at the time of judgement.  The couple had lived separately under the same roof for a period.   The father ceased being the earner for the household following a...

A couple had two children aged 7 and 5 years who had lived with the mother.  The mother had declined to facilitate contact with the father because of the father’s history of family violence including verbal...

A judge ordered that both parents have equal shared parental responsibility for their three children, except that the mother have sole parental responsibility to make decisions on delegated topics affecting the health of their children for...

A couple had an order for shared care. The mother then applied to relocate with three children aged 10, 8 and 5 years to a town 78km away. The trial judge allowed the relocation. The father...

A child lived with its parents until they separated when the child was aged 15 months, and then lived in an approximately equal time shared care arrangement until the child was aged 2 years 10 months,...

A judge ordered that parents have joint parental care for their 10 year old child, except that the mother have sole parental responsibility and care for health care and for decisions about the child’s music tuition...

The Appeal Court ruled that when no parenting orders have been issued by a court then parents may exercise their parental responsibility by making either an independent decision or a joint decision.  Once an order has been issued...

Parents disputed arrangements for a 10 year old child.  The father proposed orders that the judge considered would amount to micro-management of parenting, including a formula for extracurricula activities, and a request that medical and dental...

Parents had a son aged 10 years with special needs from cerebral palsy, and a daughter aged 7 years.  The judge awarded joint parental responsibility to both parents except that the mother have sole parental responsibility...

An order had been made for parents to have equal shared parental responsibility for a child aged 7 years who had special needs.  Evidence was presented that the parents were unable to make joint decisions about...

A mother applied for sole parental responsibility to make decisions both about the daily welfare and long-term issues on behalf of a 2.5 year old child, even while the child was living with the father, including arranging haircuts. ...

The judge ordered that neither parent enrol their child in any extracurricula activities that required the child to attend during the other parent’s time, without the prior written consent of the other parent.  ...Read More

A judge ordered that two children aged 3 and 6 years live with their mother and spend daytime periods with their father who had re-partnered.  The judge ordered that the father’s de facto spouse be restrained...

The mother of a 3 year old had commenced a relationship with a new partner (re-partnered).  The father asked for an order to prevent their daughter from coming into contact with the mother’s new partner. The...

A couple had two children aged 13 and 7 years.  An initial order for shared care granted 9 days to the mother and 5 days to the father.  The mother applied for the order to be...

Both parents in a high conflict couple were prohibited from taking photographs of their son aged 12 years if the sole purpose of the photograph was to support a complaint about the parenting provided by the...

A couple with 3 children separated with the children living with their mother with a shared parental responsibility arrangement.   The father sought time with the children, and this was opposed by the mother. The mother alleged that the father...

A couple separated one year after having a daughter and then engaged in constant litigation and had been a high conflict couple for 4 years.  The mother alleged she had been subjected to family violence in the...

A couple had lived together for 13 years before separating and had 2 children aged 12 and 9 years.  They had been litigating for 4 years and disputed a range of topics including which school one...

The mother had obtained work in an overseas country and had relocated with the young child to that country by consent for 2 years.  The child travelled to see the father each month for two years. ...

A judge ordered a progressive increase (graduated approach) in the number of overnight stays with her father from 1 to 2 overnight stays when the child reached the age of about 2 years (age of child). ...

The case involved an appeal against the procedure followed by a judge. The couple had a daughter who was aged about one year when the case was heard, who lived with the mother.   The couple had...

The judge ordered that the children live with the mother and, provided the father lives within 50 kilometers of the children’s school and that visits are practicable, the children spend substantial and significant time with the...

A couple had three children aged 10, 9 and 8 years.  Interim orders had been made for the children to live with the father and to spend time with the mother.  When the case was reviewed...

A father pleaded guilty to assaulting the mother.  The mother later withheld the child from the father and applied for an order that the father have access to the child only under supervision by members of...

Parents of children aged 12 and 10 years had been separated with an order granting the father fortnightly access that was supervised until the children were aged 12 years.  The father had displayed family violence by...

A father of two daughters aged 12 and 8 years informed his daughters that their mother was mean, and that he missed his daughters and cried every night and morning, and that he had no money...