Archer and Parker and Anor

In *Archer and Parker and Anor*, Justice Collier of the Family Court of Australia considered orders relating to the parental responsibility and contact arrangements for a child born in February 1995. The proceedings involved the applicant, Mr Archer, the first respondent, Ms Parker, and the second respondent, Mr Owen, who was identified as the child's biological father. The core of the dispute revolved around the disclosure of Mr Owen's paternity to the child and the subsequent arrangements for the child to spend time with him.

The court was required to determine the extent of equal shared parental responsibility between Mr Archer and Ms Parker, and to establish a framework for the child to learn about and potentially have contact with her biological father, Mr Owen. This included deciding on the appropriate method and timing for the disclosure of Mr Owen's paternity and the arrangements for the child to spend time with him, taking into account the child's wishes as she approached her sixteenth birthday.

Justice Collier reasoned that it was in the child's best interests to be informed of Mr Owen's biological paternity and to have the opportunity to develop a relationship with him. The court discharged previous orders and made new orders establishing equal shared parental responsibility between Mr Archer and Ms Parker. Crucially, the court ordered that a meeting be arranged, facilitated by Mr Archer, between the child, Mr Archer, Mr Owen, and a Dr M, at which Dr M would inform the child of Mr Owen's paternity. Following this meeting, the child was to spend time with Mr Owen according to her wishes, with Mr Archer directed to facilitate any such wishes. Mr Owen was also ordered to pay Dr M's fees related to the meeting and report.