Director-General, Department of Communities, Child Safety and Disability Services and Williams

The Director-General of the Department of Communities, Child Safety and Disability Services (the Department) sought to appeal a decision of the Childrens Court of Queensland. The dispute concerned the Department's application for an order under section 51(1)(b) of the *Child Protection Act 1999* (Qld) for the child to be placed in the Director-General's care. The matter came before Hogan J of the Supreme Court of Queensland.

The primary legal issue before the Court was whether the Department had established, on the balance of probabilities, that the child was a child in need of protection as defined by the *Child Protection Act 1999* (Qld). This required the Court to consider the evidence presented by the Department and determine if it met the threshold for intervention under the Act.

Hogan J found that the evidence presented by the Department did not satisfy the onus of proof required by section 51(1)(b) of the *Child Protection Act 1999* (Qld). The Court concluded that the Department had failed to demonstrate, on the balance of probabilities, that the child was in need of protection. Consequently, the Department's application was dismissed. The Court discharged all previous orders.