BROWN & MABLE

This matter concerned orders relating to a child, X, born in 2011. The primary dispute involved the Minister for Family and Community Services of New South Wales, who intervened in the proceedings, and the child's mother. The court was required to determine the appropriate parenting arrangements for X, including issues of parental responsibility, living arrangements, and contact with the mother and other family members.

The court was tasked with determining the extent of the Minister's parental responsibility for X, the conditions under which X would live and spend time with her mother, and the specific restrictions to be placed on the father's contact with X. Further issues included the mother's obligations regarding alcohol consumption and drug testing, communication protocols between X and her mother, and the involvement of extended family members. The court also considered the father's proximity to X and his presence with his mother during contact.

In its reasoning, the court discharged all previous orders concerning X and granted the Minister sole parental responsibility until X turned eighteen. X was to live as directed by the Minister, with specific provisions for supervised or unsupervised time with the mother, subject to the Minister's discretion. The mother was restrained from consuming alcohol for 48 hours prior to and during contact, and was required to undergo urinalysis testing. The father was significantly restrained from spending time with or communicating with X, and from approaching places where X resided or attended school. The court also made orders regarding X's communication with her mother on significant dates and the inclusion of the father's name on X's birth certificate.

The court ordered that the Minister have sole parental responsibility for X until she attains the age of eighteen. X was to live as directed by the Minister, and contact with the mother was to be at the Minister's discretion, with specific conditions imposed on the mother regarding alcohol, urinalysis, and notification of contact. The father was restrained from any contact with X and from approaching her, with specific exceptions for his mother. The Minister was also given discretion regarding informing X about her father and was ordered to apply to include the father on X's birth certificate.