Connolly and Scaife and Anor

In *Connolly and Scaife and Anor*, the applicant, Mr Connolly, sought to stay the enforcement of child support orders made by the Ontario Court of Justice in 1997, and alternatively, to suspend or retrospectively discharge those orders. The respondent, Ms Scaife, opposed the application. The matter came before Judge Scarlett in the Federal Circuit Court of Australia.

The primary legal issues before the court were whether it had jurisdiction to grant a stay of enforcement of the Canadian child support orders under section 111C of the *Child Support (Registration and Collection) Act 1988* (Cth), and whether section 66S of the *Family Law Act 1975* (Cth) was applicable to the circumstances. The applicant contended that the court possessed the power to grant a stay, while the respondents argued that no "proceeding" existed under the relevant legislation for a stay to be granted, and that section 66S was not applicable as the applicant was not seeking a variation of a maintenance order.

During the proceedings, the applicant and first respondent, both represented by lawyers in Toronto, entered into Minutes of Settlement on 3 March 2016. These Minutes resolved the child support matter on a final basis, with the respondent agreeing to pay $48,000 in full and final satisfaction of all child support claims and costs. The applicant agreed to advise the Family Responsibility Office to terminate the respondent's child support obligations and to assume responsibility for university expenses for one of the children.

Consequently, the court ordered that the stay of enforcement of the Ontario child support orders, which had been made on 9 December 2014, be discharged. The amended initiating application seeking interim and final orders was dismissed in its entirety, reflecting the settlement reached by the parties.