Chranley & Smart (No. 7)

The parties in this matter were the father and the mother. The father alleged that the mother had given false evidence during a hearing. The court seized of the matter was the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia, presided over by Strickland J.

The primary legal issue before the court was whether the father had established a case of contempt against the mother based on her alleged false evidence. This required the court to consider the form and substance of the allegations made by the father, and the evidence he presented in support of those allegations. A secondary issue arose when the father sought leave to file amended affidavits during the hearing.

Strickland J found that the father's allegations of contempt were not in the proper form. The father relied on his own evidence and the affidavits of three witnesses. However, the court determined that the father's applications, in their entirety, were vexatious and frivolous, and therefore dismissed them. Leave was granted for the father to file amended affidavits during the hearing, as there was no objection from the mother.