HARAGLI & PASUT AND ANOR - [2018] FamCA 518

FAMILY COURT OF AUSTRALIA

HARAGLI & PASUT AND ANOR

[2018] FamCA 518

FAMILY LAW – CHILDREN – Order for sole parental responsibility and residence – Child born of international commercial gestational surrogacy arrangement – Orders granted unopposed after two family reports.

APPLICANT:

Mr Haragli

RESPONDENT:

Ms Pasut

SECOND RESPONDENT:

Mr Pasut

INDEPENDENT CHILDREN’S LAWYER:

Ms M Ruzyla

FILE NUMBER:

MLC

5687

2015

DATE DELIVERED:

19 June 2018

PLACE DELIVERED:

Melbourne

PLACE HEARD:

Melbourne

JUDGMENT OF:

Bennett J

HEARING DATE:

19 June 2018

REPRESENTATION

COUNSEL FOR THE APPLICANT:

Ms Webb

SOLICITOR FOR THE APPLICANT:

Danielle Webb Lawyer

COUNSEL FOR THE RESPONDENT:

No appearance

SOLICITOR FOR THE RESPONDENT:

COUNSEL FOR THE INDEPENDENT CHILDREN’S LAWYER:

Mr Marchetti

SOLICITOR FOR THE INDEPENDENT CHILDREN’S LAWYER:

Victoria Legal Aid

Orders

IT IS ORDERED THAT:

The Father have sole parental responsibility for the child X, born … 2014.
The child live with the Father.
That solicitors for the Applicant father forthwith serve, by international express post, to the Respondents the following documents:-
a.     copy of these Orders;
b.     copy of the reasons provided this day;
c.     copy of the Family Report by Ms B, dated 12 June 2018
All extant applications be otherwise dismissed.
The appointment of the Independent Children’s Lawyer be discharged.
Pursuant to Sections 65DA(2) and 62B the particulars and the obligations these orders create and the particulars of the consequences that may follow if a person contravenes these orders and details of who can assist parties adjust to and comply with an order are set out in the Fact Sheet attached hereto and those particulars are included in these orders.

IT IS DIRECTED:

That the proposed minute of orders as amended be marked Exhibit “A” and remain on the Court file.
My reasons for decision this day be transcribed and when settled placed on the Court file and a copy provided to the parties.

Note: The form of the order is subject to the entry of the order in the Court’s records.

IT IS NOTED that publication of this judgment by this Court under the pseudonym Haragli & Pasut has been approved by the Chief Justice pursuant to s 121(9)(g) of the Family Law Act 1975 (Cth).

Note: This copy of the Court’s Reasons for Judgment may be subject to review to remedy minor typographical or grammatical errors (r 17.02A(b) of the Family Law Rules 2004 (Cth)), or to record a variation to the order pursuant to r 17.02 Family Law Rules 2004 (Cth).

FAMILY COURT OF AUSTRALIA AT MELBOURNE

FILE NUMBER: MLC 5687 of 2015

Mr Haragli

Applicant

And

Ms Pasut

Respondent

And

Mr Pasut

And

Independent Children’s Lawyer

EX TEMPORE REASONS FOR JUDGMENT

This matter comes before me for final hearing having an application been initiated by the father and filed on 23 June 2015 in which he seeks parenting orders in relation to his son, X (the child), born in 2014. The child was born in Asia pursuant to a surrogacy arrangement entered into by the father with the first…

Grounds of appeal

[14] The appellant contends that the primary judge erred in finding that the respondent had discharged the onus of establishing the matters required under the relevant provision.

[15] It was submitted that his Honour failed to give adequate weight to the evidence of the second witness, and that the findings of fact were not reasonably open on the material before the Court.

[16] The respondent, for its part, submits that no error is disclosed, and that the conclusions reached were well within the range of outcomes available to the primary judge.

Consideration

[17] It is convenient to deal first with the question of construction, as the resolution of that issue informs the remaining grounds advanced by the appellant.

[18] For the reasons that follow, we are of the view that the appeal should be allowed in part and the matter remitted for further determination.

Continue reading HARAGLI & PASUT AND ANOR

Details

AGLC: HARAGLI & PASUT AND ANOR [2018] FamCA 518
Case: [2018] FamCA 518
Decision Date: 19 June 2018

CaseChat Overview and Summary

In the matter of *Haragli & Pasut and Anor*, the applicant father sought sole parental responsibility and orders for the child X, born in 2014, to live with him. The respondents were the child's mother and another party.

The central legal issue before Bennett J was to determine the parenting arrangements for the child X, specifically whether sole parental responsibility should be granted to the father and whether the child should live with him, considering the best interests of the child.

The court's decision was informed by a Family Report dated 12 June 2018. Based on the evidence and the report, the court ordered that the father have sole parental responsibility for the child X and that the child live with the father. The court also directed that copies of the orders, reasons for decision, and the Family Report be served on the respondents by international express post. All other extant applications were dismissed, and the appointment of the Independent Children’s Lawyer was discharged. The court further included a Fact Sheet detailing the particulars of the orders, the consequences of contravention, and sources of assistance, pursuant to Sections 65DA(2) and 62B of the relevant legislation.

Orders

Orders of the court

IT IS ORDERED THAT:

The Father have sole parental responsibility for the child X, born … 2014.

The child live with the Father.

That solicitors for the Applicant father forthwith serve, by international express post, to the Respondents the following documents:-

a. copy of these Orders;

b. copy of the reasons provided this day;

c. copy of the Family Report by Ms B, dated 12 June 2018

All extant applications be otherwise dismissed.

The appointment of the Independent Children’s Lawyer be discharged.

Pursuant to Sections 65DA(2) and 62B the particulars and the obligations these orders create and the particulars of the consequences that may follow if a person contravenes these orders and details of who can assist parties adjust to and comply with an order are set out in the Fact Sheet attached hereto and those particulars are included in these orders.

IT IS DIRECTED:

That the proposed minute of orders as amended be marked Exhibit “A” and remain on the Court file.

My reasons for decision this day be transcribed and when settled placed on the Court file and a copy provided to the parties.

Note: The form of the order is subject to the entry of the order in the Court’s records.

Background

Background to the litigation

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Evidence

Evidence Before The Court

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Decision

Reasons for decision

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Ratio Decidendi

Legal Principle Established

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