Dudley and Anor & Chedi

In the matter of Dudley and Anor & Chedi, heard before Watts J, the applicants, Mr and Ms Dudley, sought orders concerning the care and responsibility for two children, L1 and L2, born in August 2009. The dispute centred on the parental responsibility for these children, with the court ultimately making orders regarding their living arrangements and the allocation of decision-making authority.

The primary legal issue before the court was the determination of parental responsibility for the children, specifically whether to grant equal shared parental responsibility to the applicants for both long-term and day-to-day decisions. Additionally, the court was required to consider the implications of the circumstances surrounding the children's birth in relation to the *Surrogate Parenthood Act 1988* (Qld).

Watts J ordered that the children live with the applicants, Mr and Ms Dudley, and that they share equal parental responsibility for making decisions concerning long-term and day-to-day issues in respect of the children. Furthermore, the Registrar was directed to provide a copy of the judgment to the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions, Queensland, for consideration of potential prosecution of the applicants under section 3 of the *Surrogate Parenthood Act 1988* (Qld), and to provide any requested documents from the court file to that office.