Hawley and Wiggins (No 2)

In the matter of *Hawley and Wiggins (No 2)*, Bennett J of the Family Court of Australia considered an application concerning the living arrangements and time spent between the children, X, Y, and Z, and their parents. The primary dispute revolved around the practical arrangements for the children's time with their father, particularly in light of an existing family violence order.

The court was required to determine the specific orders regarding the children's residence, the father's time with them, and the arrangements for the handover of the children. A key legal issue was how to facilitate the father's time with the children while ensuring compliance with a family violence order that prohibited him from being within five metres of the mother. The court also had to consider the father's living arrangements and the mother's access to inspect his property.

Bennett J applied principles relating to the best interests of the children, as mandated by the *Family Law Act 1975*. The court made orders for the children to live with the mother and set out a detailed schedule for the father to spend time with them, including specific dates and times. To address the conflict with the family violence order, the court specified that all handovers were to occur at a public location, the turnstiles at Suburb K Railway Station, and explicitly noted that this arrangement was made pursuant to s 68P of the Act to facilitate contact while acknowledging the potential for proximity. The court also made orders for the father to ensure the children slept at either his residence or his paternal grandfather's residence, with notification to the independent children's lawyer, and facilitated an inspection of the father's property by the mother.

The court's orders included provisions for the father to provide photographs and videos of his property to the independent children's lawyer, and for the mother to refrain from making travel plans during specific school holidays. Furthermore, the court directed that sealed copies of the orders be provided to various law enforcement and child welfare agencies, and that the court's reasons for decision be transcribed and distributed. The orders also incorporated a fact sheet detailing the obligations and consequences of contravening the orders.