Barr & Wang

In the matter of Barr & Wang, Judge O'Shannessy of the Family Court of Australia considered an application concerning a child, X, born in 2013. The dispute involved the duration for which the child should remain on a Family Law Watch List. Both the father, Mr Barr, and the mother, Ms Wang, sought for the child to remain on the watch list indefinitely, with the father expressing concern that the child might be taken overseas.

The primary legal issue before the court was to determine the appropriate duration for the child's placement on the Family Law Watch List. This involved balancing the father's concerns about international child abduction against the mother's reservations about the impact of such an order on the child's ability to travel and see family. The court was required to consider the provisions of Part VII of the *Family Law Act 1975* (Cth) concerning parental consent for the removal of a child from Australia.

Judge O'Shannessy reasoned that an indefinite watch list order was not appropriate. Instead, the court ordered that the child, X, be placed on the Family Law Watch List until 15 March 2028, which is the date the child will attain the age of 15. This order was made subject to the authenticated consent of all parties required by Part VII of the *Family Law Act 1975* (Cth) for the removal of the child from Australia. The Australian Federal Police were directed to give effect to this order by maintaining the child's name on the watch list until that date, or until further court order or authenticated consent. The court also noted that the mother had agreed to the watch list order but expressed that she considered it "very cruel" to prevent the child from seeing their maternal grandparents. The final orders made on 8 December 2020 were to remain in full force and effect.