Buller-Briggs and Buller

In *Buller-Briggs and Buller*, Hogan J of the Family Court of Australia made final orders concerning the care and welfare of a child, B. The dispute involved the grandmother, Ms Buller-Briggs (the applicant), and the child's mother.

The court was required to determine the living arrangements for the child, B, including who would have parental responsibility for long-term decisions and the daily care of the child. Further issues included the specific arrangements for the child to spend time with the mother, communication protocols between the parties, and the mother's conduct while the child is in her care. The court also considered the need for a recovery order to ensure the child's transition into the grandmother's care.

Hogan J ordered that the child, B, live with the applicant grandmother from a specified date and time. The grandmother was granted sole parental responsibility for all major long-term issues concerning the child, subject to a process requiring her to inform and consider the mother's written responses before making such decisions. The court also detailed specific arrangements for the child to spend time with the mother, including collection and return protocols, and stipulated communication rights for both parties. Crucially, the mother was restrained from using illicit drugs or permitting the child to be in the presence of persons using illicit drugs while the child was in her care. A recovery order was issued, authorising law enforcement to find and recover the child and deliver him to the grandmother's care, to be held in abeyance pending confirmation of the child's compliance with the orders. The Independent Children's Lawyer was discharged upon confirmation of the child's placement with the grandmother.