BEAU & SAIGER

In the matter of BEAU & SAIGER, Judge Morley of the Family Court of Australia considered interim parenting orders concerning a child, X, born in 2016. The proceedings arose because the parties were unable to complete a final hearing within the allotted time, despite an existing consent parenting arrangement and the availability of a Family Report, which had not yet been tested. The court's task was to determine appropriate interim orders for the child's time with his father, considering that equal time and substantial and significant time were deemed not appropriate in the circumstances.

The court was required to determine the specific arrangements for the child X to spend time with his father on an interim basis. This involved establishing a schedule for the father's time with X, including weekday and weekend arrangements, and specifying the commencement and duration of these periods. Additionally, the court needed to address practical matters such as the location of changeovers between parents and to implement orders designed to protect the child from parental denigration and ensure ongoing communication regarding the child's welfare.

Judge Morley reasoned that a phased approach to increasing the father's time with X was appropriate, commencing with weekday overnight stays and progressing to alternate weekends, with a further increase in weekend time scheduled for September 2020. The court also made orders regarding the location of changeovers, specifying locations such as the mother's residence, day care, or pre-school, and a particular store for weekend changeovers. Crucially, the court imposed restraints on both parents from denigrating each other or allowing X to be exposed to such denigration, and mandated communication regarding X's health, medication, and progress, particularly concerning sleeping difficulties. The court vacated certain previous interim orders and made new orders detailing the father's time with X, changeover arrangements, communication protocols, and prohibitions on denigration, pending further orders.