Adoption of G

In the Family Court of Australia, the case concerning the adoption of a child named G was heard. The applicant sought to adopt G, a child born in the Philippines, under the Family Law (Hague Convention on Intercountry Adoption) Regulations 1998. The primary issue was whether the necessary reports had been exchanged between the Central Authorities of Australia and the Philippines, as required by the Hague Convention on Protection of Children and Co-operation in respect of Inter-Country Adoption.

The legal issues revolved around the procedural requirements set forth by the Hague Convention, specifically Articles 15 and 16. These articles mandate that the Central Authority in the country where the child was born must transmit a report to the Central Authority in the adopting country, and vice versa. The court needed to determine whether these steps were properly followed and if the requisite reports were exchanged as required by the Convention.

The court found that there was no evidence presented to demonstrate that the Central Authority in New South Wales had transmitted a report to the Central Authority in the Philippines, as mandated by Article 15. Similarly, there was no evidence of the Central Authority in the Philippines transmitting a report to the Central Authority in New South Wales, as required by Article 16. Consequently, the court concluded that the procedural requirements of the Hague Convention were not met. Therefore, the application for adoption was dismissed.