FEDERAL CIRCUIT AND FAMILY COURT OF AUSTRALIA
(DIVISION 2)
Davidson & Betts (No 2) [2025] FedCFamC2F 930
File number(s): MLC 2601 of 2023 Judgment of: JUDGE O'SHANNESSY Date of judgment: 13 May 2025 Catchwords: FAMILY LAW – Parenting – final orders – oral reasons delivered soon after the hearing – where the mother have sole parental responsibility – where the children live with the mother – where the time spent between the father and children be decided by the mother and on such conditions by her – where the mother be authorised to obtain passports for children – where the mother be authorised to travel with the children outside the Commonwealth of Australia – where the mother be permitted to change the last names of the children. Legislation: Family Law Act 1975 (Cth) ss 4AB, 60CA, 60CC, 114AB & 102NA
Evidence Act 1995 (Cth) ss 140
Cases cited: Fox v Percy (2003) 214 CLR 118 Division: Division 2 Family Law Number of paragraphs: 142 Date of last submission/s: 13 May 2025 Date of hearing: 5 – 8 May 2025 Place: Melbourne Counsel for the Applicant: Mr Allen Solicitor for the Applicant: Michelle Moloney Family Lawyers Counsel for the Respondent: Mr Kaufman Solicitor for the Respondent: Aboriginal Family Violence Prevention & Legal Service Counsel for the Independent Children's Lawyer: Ms Stavrakakis Solicitor for the Independent Children's Lawyer: Trapski Family Law ORDERS
MLC 2601 of 2023 FEDERAL CIRCUIT AND FAMILY COURT OF AUSTRALIA (DIVISION 2)
BETWEEN: MR DAVIDSON
Applicant
AND: MS BETTS
Respondent
INDEPENDENT CHILDREN'S LAWYER
ORDER MADE BY:
JUDGE O'SHANNESSY
DATE OF ORDER:
13 MAY 2025
THE COURT ORDERS THAT:
Previous Orders
1.All previous parenting orders be and are discharged.
Decision-Making
2.Ms Betts (‘the Mother’) have sole parental responsibility and be solely responsible for making decisions about major long-term issues in relation to the children X (born in 2013), Y (born in 2016) and Z (born in 2021) (‘the children’).
3.In the event of any serious illness or injury to the children or any of them, within 28 days of that illness or injury, the Mother inform Ms D, the mother of Mr Davidson (‘the Father’), of that illness or injury and the children’s prognosis and/or recovery therefrom and request Ms D to inform the Father of those matters.
Live With/Spend Time With and Communication Arrangements
4.The children live with the Mother.
5.Any time and/or communication between the children and Mr Davidson (‘the Father’) be as decided by the Mother and on such conditions as decided by her.
6.There be no further orders for time and/or communication between the children and the Father.
Passport
7.Pursuant to section 11(1)(b) of the Australian Passports Act 2005, the Mother be and is authorised to sign and execute any documents necessary for any of the children to obtain an Australian passport or to extend any existing passport, without first obtaining the written consent of the Father, and the Mother be at liberty to provide a sealed copy of these orders to the Australian Passport…
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- Davidson & Betts (No 2) [2025] FedCFamC2F 930
- Case
- [2025] FedCFamC2F 930
- Decision Date
CaseChat Overview and Summary
In delivering the judgment, Judge O'Shannessy considered the best interests of the children as the paramount concern. The court found that Ms Betts should have sole parental responsibility, including the authority to make decisions about major long-term issues concerning the children. The children would continue to live with Ms Betts, and the father's time and communication with them would be determined by Ms Betts, with no further orders regarding the father's contact. Ms Betts was granted authority to obtain passports for the children and to travel with them outside Australia without the father's consent. Additionally, Ms Betts was permitted to change the children's surnames to reflect her family name.
The court's decision resulted in the discharge of all previous parenting orders and the termination of the Independent Children's Lawyer's involvement in the matter. The final orders included sole parental responsibility for Ms Betts, specific communication arrangements between the father and the children, authorisation for Ms Betts to obtain passports and travel with the children, and permission to change the children's surnames. All other applications were dismissed, and the obligations and consequences of contravening these orders were detailed in Annexure A.
Orders
Orders of the court
MLC 2601 of 2023
FEDERAL CIRCUIT AND FAMILY COURT OF AUSTRALIA (DIVISION 2)
BETWEEN:
MR DAVIDSON
Applicant
AND:
MS BETTS
Respondent
INDEPENDENT CHILDREN'S LAWYER
ORDER MADE BY:
JUDGE O'SHANNESSY
DATE OF ORDER:
13 MAY 2025
THE COURT ORDERS THAT:
Previous Orders
1. All previous parenting orders be and are discharged.
Decision-Making
2. Ms Betts (‘the Mother’) have sole parental responsibility and be solely responsible for making decisions about major long-term issues in relation to the children X (born in 2013), Y (born in 2016) and Z (born in 2021) (‘the children’).
3. In the event of any serious illness or injury to the children or any of them, within 28 days of that illness or injury, the Mother inform Ms D, the mother of Mr Davidson (‘the Father’), of that illness or injury and the children’s prognosis and/or recovery therefrom and request Ms D to inform the Father of those matters.
Live With/Spend Time With and Communication Arrangements
4. The children live with the Mother.
5. Any time and/or communication between the children and Mr Davidson (‘the Father’) be as decided by the Mother and on such conditions as decided by her.
6. There be no further orders for time and/or communication between the children and the Father.
Passport
7. Pursuant to section 11(1)(b) of the Australian Passports Act 2005, the Mother be and is authorised to sign and execute any documents necessary for any of the children to obtain an Australian passport or to extend any existing passport, without first obtaining the written consent of the Father, and the Mother be at liberty to provide a sealed copy of these orders to the Australian Passport Office.
Overseas Travel
8. Pursuant to section 65Y of the Family Law Act 1975, the Mother is authorised to remove any of the children from the Commonwealth of Australia for the purpose of travel at her discretion.
Name Change
9. The Mother be and is permitted to do all acts and things to cause the children’s names to be changed from Y DAVIDSON to Y BETTS-DAVIDSON and from Z DAVIDSON to Z BETTS-DAVIDSON.
General
10. The order appointing the Independent Children’s Lawyer be and is discharged.
11. All extant applications be and are otherwise dismissed.
AND THE COURT NOTES THAT:
A. Pursuant to ss.65DA(2) and 62B of the Family Law Act 1975 the particulars of the obligations these orders create and the particulars of the consequences that may follow if a person contravenes these orders are set out in Annexure A and these particulars are included in these orders.
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
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Evidence
Evidence Before The Court
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Decision
Reasons for decision
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Ratio Decidendi
Legal Principle Established
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