FEDERAL CIRCUIT AND FAMILY COURT OF AUSTRALIA
(DIVISION 2)
Colman & Booth [2025] FedCFamC2F 812
File number(s): SYC 4385 of 2023 Judgment of: JUDGE STREET Date of judgment: 13 June 2025 Catchwords: FAMILY LAW – No appearance by the father – undefended hearing - deliberate failure by the father to comply with the Court's orders for drug testing and refrain from attending the children’s daycare centres and sending inappropriate communications to the mother and improper threats - the father continues to struggle with addiction to methamphetamine and marijuana – father convicted of driving under the influence of methamphetamine and breaching ADVOs protecting the mother and children– father continues to have no insight as to his own conduct – not safe for children to have a relationship with the father - risk to the children is sufficiently real and has a catastrophic consequence for the children unless arrangements as identified in these parenting orders were made. Legislation: Family Law Act 1975 (Cth)
Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Family Law) Rules 2021 (Cth)
Cases cited: A v A [1998] FamCA 25; (1998) FLC 92-800
Chiles & Petrenko [2024] FedCFamC1A 112
Director General, Department of Family and Community Services (NSW) and the Colt Children [2013] NSWChC 5
Hickson & Matthew [2022] FedCFamC1A 161
Kapoor & Kapoor [2024] FedCFamC2F 605
Division: Division 2 Family Law Number of paragraphs: 49 Date of hearing: 26 May 2025 Place: Sydney Counsel for the Applicant: Ms C Cantrall Solicitor for the Applicant: Swabb Attorneys For the Respondent: The Respondent did not appear Counsel for the Independent Children's Lawyer: Ms M Yu Solicitor for the Independent Children's Lawyer: Russell Kennedy Lawyers NSW ORDERS
SYC 4385 of 2023 FEDERAL CIRCUIT AND FAMILY COURT OF AUSTRALIA (DIVISION 2)
BETWEEN: MS COLMAN
Applicant
AND: MR BOOTH
Respondent
INDEPENDENT CHILDREN'S LAWYER
ORDER MADE BY:
JUDGE STREET
DATE OF ORDER:
26 MAY 2025
THE COURT ORDERS THAT:
1.The Court is satisfied that the requirements of r 10.27(1)(h) of the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Family Law) Rules 2021 (Cth) and that the proceedings should proceed as an undefended hearing without hearing from the defaulting party.
2.The Court dispenses with any need for the Independent Children’s lawyer to meet with either of the two children, the subject of these proceedings.
3.All earlier parenting orders are vacated.
4.That the mother have sole decision making responsibility for the children X (born in 2020) and Y (born in 2022) ("the children").
Living arrangements
5.That the children live with the mother.
6.That the children spend time with the father as agreed between the parties in writing.
Communication
7.That the father be permitted to communicate with the children by FaceTime on the first Thursday of each month between 6:00pm and 6:30pm, or as agreed otherwise in writing, with the father to contact the mother's mobile … (or such other mobile number as nominated by the mother in writing) and the mother to facilitate the call.
8.That the…
Continue reading Colman & Booth
Sign in free to access the full text
- AGLC
- Colman & Booth [2025] FedCFamC2F 812
- Case
- [2025] FedCFamC2F 812
- Decision Date
CaseChat Overview and Summary
The court had to decide if it was safe for the children to maintain any relationship with their father, given his ongoing struggles with drug addiction and criminal behavior. The court noted Mr Booth's failure to comply with drug testing orders, his presence at the children's daycare centres, and his threats and inappropriate communications to the mother. The evidence showed that Mr Booth lacked insight into his behavior and posed a significant risk to the children's safety. The court concluded that it was not in the children's best interest to have any unsupervised contact with their father.
The court issued comprehensive orders to protect the children's welfare. It granted the mother sole decision-making responsibility and ordered the children to live with her. The father was permitted limited supervised contact, including FaceTime calls and sending presents. The court also imposed strict restrictions on the father's behavior, such as prohibiting him from consuming illicit drugs, attending the children's daycare centres, or contacting the mother or children outside of the court-approved parameters. Additionally, the father was restrained from removing the children from Australia and from applying for passports for them. The mother was authorized to apply for passports for the children without the father's consent. The court also mandated that the father pay the mother's legal costs and the Independent Children's Lawyer's fees.
Orders
Orders of the court
SYC 4385 of 2023
FEDERAL CIRCUIT AND FAMILY COURT OF AUSTRALIA (DIVISION 2)
BETWEEN:
MS COLMAN
Applicant
AND:
MR BOOTH
Respondent
INDEPENDENT CHILDREN'S LAWYER
ORDER MADE BY:
JUDGE STREET
DATE OF ORDER:
26 MAY 2025
THE COURT ORDERS THAT:
1. The Court is satisfied that the requirements of r 10.27(1)(h) of the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Family Law) Rules 2021 (Cth) and that the proceedings should proceed as an undefended hearing without hearing from the defaulting party.
2. The Court dispenses with any need for the Independent Children’s lawyer to meet with either of the two children, the subject of these proceedings.
3. All earlier parenting orders are vacated.
4. That the mother have sole decision making responsibility for the children X (born in 2020) and Y (born in 2022) ("the children").
Living arrangements
5. That the children live with the mother.
6. That the children spend time with the father as agreed between the parties in writing.
Communication
7. That the father be permitted to communicate with the children by FaceTime on the first Thursday of each month between 6:00pm and 6:30pm, or as agreed otherwise in writing, with the father to contact the mother's mobile … (or such other mobile number as nominated by the mother in writing) and the mother to facilitate the call.
8. That the father be permitted to send the children presents on their birthdays and Christmases to a PO box or address nominated by the mother.
9. That the father download the OurFamilyWizard app within 48 hours and to pay his share of the costs of that app, and subject to order 4 and 5, is to only communicate with the mother through that app in regard to parenting matters relating to the children. That the mother has already downloaded the app and paid her share of the costs of that app when it was ordered on 28 August 2024 to facilitate the communication with the children.
Restraints
10. That pursuant to Section 68B(1) the father be restrained by injunction from:
10.1 Attending the mother’s place of residence;
10.2 Attending the mother's place of employment;
10.3 From removing the children from the care of the mother, other than as provided for in these Orders;
10.4 Contacting or approaching the mother or the children, other than as provided for in these Orders;
10.5 Consuming any illicit drugs 24 hours prior to and during times that the children are in his care;
10.6 Contacting or approaching within 100 metres of the children's daycare centres and/or schools as the children shall attend from time to time, and/or vacation care programme, before and after school provider and any extracurricular, or co-curricular and sporting or other activities attended by the children, whether at the time the children are present or not, or removing or causing the removal of the children from the daycare centre/ school/ vacation care/ before and after school care/extracurricular/cocurricular/sporting and/or other activity attended by the children, other than as provided for in these Orders;
11. That each party be and hereby is restrained from:
11.1 Denigrating the other parent or their family in the presence or hearing of the children or permitting any other person to do so;
11.2 Discussing these proceedings in the presence or hearing of the children or permitting any other person to do so;
11.3 Posting photographs of the children on social media.
Family Law Watchlist and Passport
12. Pursuant to s 68B of the Family Law Act 1975 (Cth), Mr Booth (born in 1979), his servants and/or agents be and are hereby restrained by injunction, and irrespective of authenticated consent as contemplated in Part VII of the Family Law Act 1975, from removing or attempting to remove or causing or permitting the removal of the children X (date of birth 2020) and Y (date of birth 2022) from the Commonwealth of Australia for a period of 17 years or until the Court orders its removal and it is requested that the Australian Federal Police give effect to this order by placing the names of the said children on the Family Law Watchlist in force at all points of arrival and departure and the Commonwealth of Australia and maintain the children's names on the watchlist for the said period or until the Court orders its removal.
13. That pursuant to section 11 of the Passports Act 2005 the mother shall be authorised to do all acts and things necessary to apply for and maintain and keep updated an Australian passport for the children without the consent of the father.
14. That the father be restrained from applying for a passport in the name of either of the children.
15. That the mother be permitted to travel with the children outside the Commonwealth of Australia without the consent of the father and that provisions of this Order shall be authority for the mother to travel outside the Commonwealth of Australia with the children.
General
16. The mother shall not be required to provide her address to the father.
17. The mother shall be at liberty to provide a copy of these Orders to the children's daycare, school, vacation care programme, before and after school provider and to the providers of any co-curricular, extracurricular, sporting or other activity provider, and to any doctor, hospital, counsellor or other medical practitioner providing care and/or treatment to either of the children, the New South Wales Police, the Australian Federal Police and the Australian Border Force.
18. Pursuant to s 117 of the Family Law Act 1975 (Cth) the whole of the Independent Children's Lawyer’s costs fixed in the amount of $10,615.00 is to be paid by the respondent father.
19. Pursuant to s 117 of the Family Law Act 1975 (Cth) the respondent husband pay the mother’s costs fixed in the amount of $108,414.00.
20. The Court reserves its written reasons.
Note: The form of the order is subject to the entry in the Court’s records.
Note: This copy of the Court’s Reasons for judgment may be subject to review to remedy minor typographical or grammatical errors (r 10.14(b) Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Family Law) Rules 2021 (Cth)), or to record a variation to the order pursuant to r 10.13 Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Family Law) Rules 2021 (Cth).
Part XIVB of the Family Law Act 1975 (Cth) makes it an offence, except in very limited circumstances, to publish an account of proceedings that identify persons, associated persons, or witnesses involved in family law proceedings.
Background
Background to the litigation
Full text does not contain this section.
Evidence
Evidence Before The Court
Full text does not contain this section.
Decision
Reasons for decision
Full text does not contain this section.
Ratio Decidendi
Legal Principle Established
Full text does not contain this section.