Kennett and Nickson and Ors

In the matter of *Kennett and Nickson and Ors*, heard by Judge Wilson, the dispute concerned parenting orders for a child born in 2012. The orders sought to address the future living arrangements, parental responsibility, and contact arrangements for the child, as well as issues of relocation and name change.

The court was required to determine the most appropriate parenting orders in the best interests of the child, considering the existing circumstances and the applications before it. This included deciding on sole parental responsibility, the child's residence, the extent of time the child would spend with the father and paternal grandparents, and whether the mother should be permitted to relocate with the child. The court also had to consider the father's consent to a change of the child's name and the discharge of any existing parenting orders and the appointment of an Independent Children's Lawyer.

Judge Wilson discharged all previous parenting orders and made new orders reflecting a significant shift in the child's living and contact arrangements. The mother was granted sole parental responsibility and the child was ordered to live with her. Crucially, the father and paternal grandparents were ordered to spend no time with the child, with any future contact by the paternal grandparents being at the mother's discretion. The mother was permitted to relocate with the child and to change the child's name without the father's consent. The court also ordered the father and paternal grandparents to pay the mother's costs, with a specific timeframe for them to file submissions regarding this costs order. All extant parenting applications were dismissed.