Attorney-General's Department and Economou (No 2)

The Family Court of Australia heard an application brought by the Attorney-General's Department on behalf of the requesting mother, Ms Economou, under the Family Law (Child Abduction Convention) Regulations 1986 (Cth). The application sought the return of three children to Cyprus, alleging wrongful removal by the father, Mr Economou. The mother, who had travelled to Australia, indicated her intention to remain in Australia and seek parenting orders from an Australian court concerning the children.

The central legal issue before the court was whether to grant the application for the children's return to Cyprus. This required determining if the conditions for a return order under the Regulations were met, particularly concerning the habitual residence of the children and the lawfulness of their removal. A further consideration was the mother's stated intention to remain in Australia and pursue parenting orders, and whether this constituted an acquiescence to the children remaining in Australia, which could influence the court's discretion.

Justice Kent found that the applicant, the Attorney-General's Department, did not press the application, partly due to an inability to obtain a response from the Cypriot Central Authority and in light of the mother's evidence. The court noted that the mother's affidavit clearly indicated her intention to remain in Australia and seek parenting orders, which the court interpreted as an acquiescence to the children remaining in Australia. Even if the applicant had established the necessary elements for a return order, the court indicated it would have exercised its discretion to refuse the order based on the mother's acquiescence, referencing previous decisions in *Director-General, Department of Child Safety v S* and *Department of Community Services v Crowe*.

Consequently, the court ordered the dismissal of the application for the children's return to Cyprus. Leave was granted for the mother to make an oral application for parenting orders under the *Family Law Act 1975* (Cth) concerning the children, pending the filing of formal initiating applications. Existing injunctions and requests to the Australian Federal Police, including the retention of passports and the children's names on the Airport Watch List, were ordered to remain in effect to preserve the status quo until the mother's formal application for parenting orders could be heard.