Barker and Frederick

This matter concerned parenting orders sought by the mother against the father in the Federal Circuit Court of Australia. The parties had a child, B, born in November 2005. The mother also had a child from a previous relationship, L. The parties' relationship commenced in April 2004 and they separated on 28 July 2006, with the father leaving the family home. The mother asserted that the father had provided no financial support for B since his departure and that his whereabouts were unknown. The mother was no longer pursuing property settlement orders and sought only orders relating to the children's issues.

The court was required to determine the best interests of the child, B, in accordance with the Family Law Act 1975 (Cth). Specifically, the court had to consider the presumption of equal shared parental responsibility under section 61DA of the Act and whether this presumption should be rebutted. The mother sought sole parental responsibility for B.

Strickland J applied the principles of the Family Law Act, noting that the paramount consideration in making parenting orders is the best interests of the child (s 60CA). The court considered the factors outlined in section 60CC for determining these best interests. Crucially, the court addressed the presumption of equal shared parental responsibility under section 61DA. His Honour found that the presumption was rebutted because the father's whereabouts were unknown, making consultation and agreement on parental responsibility impossible. The court was satisfied that the orders sought by the mother were in B's best interests.

The court made parenting orders granting the mother sole parental responsibility for B. However, to her credit, the mother sought orders for B to spend time with the father, which the court made, expressing hope that the father would take up this opportunity for the child's benefit, despite his current absence and lack of involvement in the proceedings.