Holgar and Stott and Anor

In the matter of *Holgar and Stott*, Dawe J of the Federal Circuit Court of Australia considered an application by the father concerning time spent with the child C. The father sought to vary existing orders regarding his time with the child, while the mother, Ms Stott, was the respondent.

The central legal issue before the Court was whether the existing parenting orders, which had been made by consent, should be discharged and replaced with new orders that provided for the father to spend time with the child C on alternate Saturdays. The Court was required to determine if the proposed new arrangements were in the best interests of the child, C.

Dawe J reasoned that the previous orders, which had been made by consent, were no longer appropriate. The Court applied the principle that parenting orders should be made in accordance with the best interests of the child. Having considered the evidence and submissions, the Court determined that it was in C's best interests for the father to spend time with the child on alternate Saturdays between 10.00 am and 4.00 pm, with handovers to occur as previously ordered.

Consequently, Dawe J ordered the discharge of the previous orders relating to the father spending time with the child. New orders were made for the father to spend time with C each alternate Saturday from 10.00 am to 4.00 pm, commencing on 16 May 2015, with all handovers to be conducted in accordance with prior arrangements. The father's application filed on 13 March 2015 was dismissed.