Deniz and Yilmaz

The Family Court of Australia considered parenting orders concerning two children, B and C. The primary dispute revolved around the extent of the father's contact with the children, with the father seeking unsupervised time and the mother seeking no direct contact, but allowing for communication. Both parents were found to be poor witnesses, and a key piece of evidence, a psychiatric assessment, was not available for cross-examination.

The court was required to determine the best interests of the children in light of allegations of family violence and the potential risk posed by the father and his family. Specifically, the court had to assess whether there was an unacceptable risk of sexual abuse, and how to balance the father's desire for contact with the children against the mother's concerns and the children's welfare. The court also considered the existing loving attachment between the father and children.

Applying the principles of the *Family Law Act 1975* (Cth), particularly sections concerning the best interests of the child and the presumption of equal shared parental responsibility (which was displaced by agreement), the court found that it could not be satisfied that there was an unacceptable risk of sexual abuse. However, given the parents' poor credibility as witnesses and the lack of opportunity to cross-examine the expert psychiatrist, the court determined that the children should spend no time with the father. The court did, however, make orders to facilitate communication between the father and the children through letters, cards, and gifts.

The court ordered that all previous parenting orders be discharged, that the mother have sole parental responsibility for the children, and that the children live with the mother. Crucially, the children were ordered to spend no time with the father, but provisions were made for the father to communicate with them via mail. The orders also included restraints on denigrating the other parent and interrogating the children about the other's household, and obligations for the mother to notify the father of medical emergencies and provide school reports.