Farmer and Johns

In *Farmer and Johns*, heard before Cronin J, the court was tasked with determining parenting orders concerning two children, R and L. The dispute centred on the living arrangements, time spent with each parent, and decision-making responsibilities for the children.

The legal issues before the court included the discharge of existing parenting orders, the primary residence of the children, the supervision of contact between the father and the children, the allocation of decision-making authority regarding the children's education and health, and the father's participation in a parenting program. The court also considered the role of a family consultant in assisting with compliance and the continuation of an Independent Children's Lawyer.

Cronin J ordered that all extant parenting orders be discharged and that the children live with the mother. The court mandated supervision of compliance with the orders by a family consultant for 12 months, who was also to provide assistance to both parents. Specific arrangements were detailed for the father's time with the children, commencing with supervised contact through a contact service, progressing to supervised weekend time with a named supervisor, and eventually to unsupervised time during alternate weekends and school holidays. The mother was granted responsibility for decisions regarding the children's education, health, and extracurricular activities, with a requirement to inform the father in writing of any major long-term decisions. The father was ordered to attend a parenting program nominated by the Independent Children’s Lawyer. All proceedings between the parties were otherwise dismissed.