Coghlan and Coghlan

This case concerned an application by Ms Coghlan to the Family Court of Australia for Australian passports for her two sons, B and C, and for the discharge of an existing Watch List order. The dispute arose from Ms Coghlan's desire to travel with the children to Country D for approximately one month to visit her elderly parents, a proposal opposed by Mr Coghlan. Mr Coghlan expressed concerns that Ms Coghlan would permanently retain the children in Country D, a nation not a signatory to the Hague Convention, where he believed Australian court orders would be unenforceable and local laws would favour Country D citizens and mothers.

The primary legal issue before the Court was whether it was in the best interests of the children, B and C, to permit their removal from Australia. This required the Court to consider the factors outlined in sections 60CA and 60CC of the *Family Law Act 1975* (Cth), including the children's right to have a meaningful relationship with both parents, the potential risks of separation, the children's views, their relationships with extended family, and the practicalities of maintaining contact. The Court also had to assess the adequacy of any proposed security to mitigate the risk of the children not being returned to Australia, drawing on principles established in cases such as *Line & Line*.

Justice Dessau determined that the risk of the children being retained in Country D was unacceptable, primarily due to Country D not being a signatory to the Hague Convention and the father's likely inability to enforce Australian orders or retrieve the children under Country D law. The Court found the mother's evidence regarding the proposed trip, the health of her parents, and her own ties to Australia to be lacking in certainty and, at times, contradictory. Consequently, the Court dismissed the mother's applications to obtain Australian passports for the children and to discharge the Watch List order. The mother was also restrained from obtaining or attempting to obtain Country D passports for the children.