Hislop and Mealor

In *Hislop and Mealor*, heard before Dawe J in the Family Court of Australia, the applicants, Mrs Hislop and Mr Hislop, sought leave to commence adoption proceedings concerning a child, B, born in December 2002. The specific nature of the dispute leading to this application for leave is not detailed, but the core of the matter concerned the procedural requirements for initiating adoption proceedings under the *Family Law Act 1975*.

The primary legal issue before the Court was whether to grant the applicants leave to commence adoption proceedings, as required by section 60G of the *Family Law Act 1975*. This section typically mandates that leave of the court is necessary before certain proceedings can be instituted, particularly in matters involving children where parental responsibility or significant orders are sought.

Dawe J granted the applicants leave to commence the adoption proceedings. The Court's reasoning, as indicated by the order, was that the statutory threshold for granting such leave had been met. The decision to grant leave effectively permitted the adoption process to move forward, signifying that the applicants had satisfied the preliminary requirements for initiating formal proceedings. Consequently, all related matters were removed from the active pending list, indicating the resolution of this preliminary procedural hurdle.