Garde and Homer

This matter concerned orders made by Rose J regarding the parental responsibilities and time spent with two children, T and G. The dispute involved the mother's relocation with the children to Singapore and the father's arrangements for spending time with them.

The court was required to determine the nature of parental responsibilities, including decision-making for long-term and day-to-day matters, and to establish a parenting regime that accommodated the children residing in Singapore with the mother while facilitating the father's time with them. This included specifying the terms of the children's residence, the father's access arrangements, and provisions for communication and travel.

Rose J ordered equal shared parental responsibilities for long-term decisions, with the mother having sole responsibility for day-to-day decisions when the children are with her, and the father having sole responsibility for day-to-day decisions when the children are with him. The children were permitted to reside with the mother and relocate to Singapore, with the father directed to provide necessary documentation for their visas and enrolment. The court also made detailed orders regarding the father's time with the children, which varied depending on whether the father was residing in Hong Kong or New South Wales/Singapore, and included provisions for communication, travel, and notification of changes in residential addresses. Further orders addressed the notification of illness or injury, refraining from discussing proceedings with the children, avoiding denigration of the other party, and facilitating communication between the children and the other parent. The court also appointed a Registrar to execute documents if a party refused to do so, and noted that the particulars of obligations and consequences of contravention were set out in annexures.