Foley and Foley and Anor

In the matter of *Foley and Foley and Anor*, Bennett J of the Family Court of Australia considered applications for declaratory relief under section 78 of the *Family Law Act 1975* (Cth) brought by the wife and the husband, as well as an application by the intervenor, Australian Postal Corporation. The dispute concerned the parties' property interests and the wife's application for an order under section 78.

The primary legal issue before the court was whether to grant declaratory relief sought by the parties under section 78 of the *Family Law Act 1975* (Cth). The court was also required to determine the costs associated with the intervenor's involvement in the proceedings.

Bennett J dismissed the applications of both the wife and the husband for declaratory relief under section 78. The court also dismissed the intervenor's application, save for the issue of costs. The reasoning for dismissing the section 78 applications was not detailed in the provided text, but the court ordered that the husband and wife each pay one half of the intervenor's costs, fixed at $15,000 in total, with provisions for individual acceptance of the quantum within 30 days. The court further dismissed any applications for relief under section 78 or section 79, with the caveat that there had been no determination on the merits of the section 79 applications for a final alteration of property interests. The proceedings were subsequently removed from the active pending cases list.