Condon and Rivers

In the Family Court of Australia, Ms Condon (Applicant) and Mr Rivers (Respondent) were involved in defended parenting and children’s proceedings. The dispute concerned an application to allow family reports, prepared by a Family Consultant, to be provided as evidence in a separate intervention order proceeding in the State Magistrates Court. The children had previously been named as affected persons in intervention orders, and there was a concern that they might be named again in the current application before the Magistrates Court.

The primary legal issue before the Family Court was whether to permit the release of the family reports to the Magistrate hearing the intervention order proceedings, and whether such release would contravene the publication restrictions imposed by section 121 of the *Family Law Act 1975* (Cth). The court was also required to consider the implications of the children being named as affected persons in the intervention order proceedings, despite assurances from the mother that she alone would be the affected person.

Justice Young reasoned that releasing the family reports to the Magistrates Court was in the best interests of the children, particularly given the history of intervention orders naming them as affected persons. The court noted that Family Law Rule 15.04 provided a power to deal with and release copies of family reports, with the ability to restrict access. In this instance, all parties to the Family Court proceedings already possessed the reports. The court determined that providing the reports to the Magistrate, subject to the Magistrate's discretion to receive and rely upon them, would facilitate a more detailed consideration of the circumstances. To address concerns about publication restrictions, the court explicitly declared that the provision of the reports to the Magistrate would not infringe upon section 121 of the *Family Law Act*, thereby authorising their use in the intervention proceedings.

The court ordered that the family reports prepared by Ms C, dated 20 May 2011 and 5 December 2011, could be provided to the Magistrate hearing the intervention order proceedings. It was further ordered that this provision would not infringe upon section 121 of the *Family Law Act*, and that the order could be relied upon to provide appropriate safeguards. The court also directed that its extempore reasons for judgment be transcribed and made available to all parties.