BORCHARD & PORTNER

The parties in this matter were the father and the mother, who sought orders concerning parental responsibility for their child. The dispute was before Cleary J of the Family Court of Australia.

The court was required to determine the specific areas of parental responsibility to be allocated between the parents, particularly concerning the child's education and medical treatment. The court also needed to consider the extent to which shared parental responsibility should be maintained in other respects.

Cleary J made orders by consent, which allocated sole parental responsibility to the father for the child's education, including decisions regarding progression to high school, and for medical treatment within Australia, encompassing specialist advice, hospitalisation, surgery, and the choice of health practitioners. In all other respects, the parties were to retain their legal parental duties, powers, responsibilities, and authority, sharing parental responsibility. The father was also ordered to advise the mother in a timely manner of any decisions made regarding the child's education and medical matters.