Finch and Finch and Ors (Costs)

This case concerned an application for costs in parenting proceedings before the Family Court of Australia. The applicant father and intervening grandparents sought costs against the respondent mother, who had admitted to knowingly making a false allegation during the proceedings. The Independent Children’s Lawyer also participated in the proceedings.

The primary legal issue before the Court was the extent to which the mother should be ordered to pay the costs of the applicant and interveners, pursuant to section 117AB of the *Family Law Act 1975* (Cth). This section mandated a costs order where a party knowingly made a false allegation or statement. A secondary issue was whether the mother's assertion that she made the false allegation under duress or undue influence from her former solicitor could negate the application of section 117AB.

The Court determined that the mother's admission of knowingly making a false allegation triggered the mandatory costs order under section 117AB. It rejected the submission that the term "knowingly made" required proof that the allegation was made of the party's own free will, finding that such a requirement was not present in the legislation. However, the Court held that the circumstances surrounding the making of the false allegation could be considered when exercising its discretion regarding the quantum of the costs order. After considering various factors, including the heinous nature of the allegations, their impact on the proceedings, the mother's partial admission and apparent remorse, the financial circumstances of the parties, and the fact that the interveners were unsuccessful in their primary objective, the Court concluded that an order for indemnity costs or full party-party costs was not appropriate.

Ultimately, the Court ordered the respondent mother to pay the sum of $3,000 towards the costs and outlays of the interveners and the applicant, to be paid within three months. This amount was intended to cover specific expenses such as the parentage test, the preparation of written submissions on costs, and the costs of supervised child contact.