expert evidence unsatisfactory

The judge found that there was an unacceptable risk to children aged 15, 12 and 9 years due to a range of factors.  The father had been convicted of aggravated indecent assault of a child of the...

For three years after separation, children aged 15, 12 and 10 years had at the mother’s insistence spent time with the father only at the mother’s house.  The mother then severed all of the children’s interaction with...

  A trial judge made orders enabling the father to spend time with the children, conditional upon a number of factors including successful completion of a three month residential rehabilitation program and completion of parenting programmes.  The father...

A mother stated that her continuing ability to parent a 5 year old child would be affected if the father spent unsupervised time with the child.  The mother alleged both physical and sexual abuse by the...

The father of a girl aged 5 years who acknowledged frequently watching adult pornography was found to have 518 images of child pornography on his computer.  The images were rated using a COPINE scale that showed...

A lawyer representing a father applied for two reports prepared by a family consultant to be set aside and for the family consultant to be discharged as the reports were not independent. The judge found that...

The child was aged 6 years at the time of the hearing, and had been previously cared for by the mother, father and paternal grandmother.  The mother was aged 16 years when the child was born,...

Both parents migrated from Africa and separated after having a child aged 5 years.  Existing orders were that the child live with the mother and spend time with the father.  The father withheld the child after...

  A mother alleged that two girls aged 3 and 6 years had been subjected to sexual abuse by their father. The mother submitted 169 items of information to support her concerns. The judge found that,...

A child aged 9 years with severe developmental delay had lived predominantly with the mother since separation and spent alternate weekends with the father.  The father requested increased contact after he remarried (re-partnered).  The mother then...

There was dispute about the admissibility of a family report prepared by an expert when interim parenting orders were requested.  An ICL can tender a report from one expert assessor without a Court’s permission, whereas parties...

A father applied to have unsupervised access with his child aged 6 years.  The father submitted reports from two assessing psychologists in support of his application. A report by one psychologist indicated that the father “does not...

The judge found that for a shared care arrangement (co-parent) to be considered viable, parents need to have the capacity to communicate, to resolve conflict, to have a modicum of trust and respect for the other...

The mother left the father taking two children aged 6 and 5 years.  The older child was fathered by a second man who took no interest in the proceedings.  The parents lived 180km apart.  The father...

The case involved two boys, C aged 8 and T aged 4 years.  Ms J was the mother of both boys, from different fathers Mr T and Mr C.  The boys lived with their maternal grandparents ...

The parents separated after 3 years of living together and had a daughter aged 6 years who had been living with her mother. When the child was aged 20 months the mother reported that the daughter...

The couple had twins aged 6 years at the time of the hearings.  The couple separated when the twins were 7 months old, and the twins lived with the mother and spent time with the father. ...

Both parents made reciprocal allegations (mutual accusations) that the other had abused their children aged 8 and 9 years.  The mother alleged that the father sexually abused the children by actions outlined below.  The father alleged...

On the first day of a trial a mother asked that the trial be adjourned because of her medical condition.  The mother was asked to provide a full medical report about her condition.  The mother responded...

A family consultant provided a report when a mother applied to relocate with a child aged 7 years.  The mother submitted information from an assessing psychologist who had provided counselling therapy, where this information was provided in...

A Court appointed expert assessed a family where a mother made allegations of sexual abuse by the father.  The report was adverse to the mother and the expert made a recommendation that was accepted by the...

A trial judge ordered that a 5 year old child live with the mother and spend time with the father.  The father appealed seeking increased time. The trial judge had noted that entries in a communication...

A mother appealed rulings made by a trial judge that required the mother to return with two children after she had relocated inter-state to be nearer to family supports. Expert Evidence A family consultant had reported,...

A couple had 4 children, KB aged 7 years, TG aged 3 years and twins WB and JB aged 9 months.  The mother had two older children who were on child protection orders and who lived...