Dean and Deluca

In the matter of Dean and Deluca, Bell J of the Family Court of Australia made orders concerning the living arrangements and time spent with two children, L and T. The dispute involved the Applicant Mother and the Respondent Father regarding the children's care and contact arrangements.

The court was required to determine the primary residence of the children, the nature of parental responsibility, and the specific terms of the Respondent Father's time with the children, including the duration, frequency, and supervision of contact. The court also considered provisions for communication between the father and children, and the discharge of the Independent Children’s Lawyer.

Bell J ordered that the children live with the mother and that both parents share parental responsibility for their long-term care, welfare, and development. The father's time with the children was to be phased in, commencing with supervised, shorter periods and progressing to unsupervised overnight stays on alternate weekends, subject to certain conditions. Specific arrangements were also made for telephone contact and holiday time. The court also stipulated that particulars of obligations and consequences of contravention, as set out in Attachment A, were incorporated into the orders pursuant to section 65DA(2) of the *Family Law Act 1975*. The Independent Children’s Lawyer was to be discharged after four weeks, and the matter was adjourned for mention.