Lake and Grey

This matter concerned orders made by consent between the mother and father regarding their children, B and C. The dispute revolved around parental responsibility, living arrangements, and contact arrangements for the children. The orders were made by consent before Macmillan J in the Family Court of Australia.

The court was required to determine the terms of consent orders concerning the children's welfare. Specifically, the issues included the allocation of sole parental responsibility, the children's residence, the nature and extent of the father's contact with each child, and various injunctions and restraints placed upon both parents to manage communication, information sharing, and the children's involvement in proceedings and their daily lives.

Macmillan J applied the principles of consent orders in family law, giving effect to the agreement reached by the parties. The orders reflect a detailed framework for the mother to have sole parental responsibility and for the children to live with her. Significant restrictions were placed on the father's contact with B, allowing no contact except by prior written agreement. For C, specific and detailed contact arrangements were outlined, including during school terms, holidays, and on specific birthdays and public holidays. The court also imposed injunctions on the father, restraining him from discussing proceedings with the children, attending certain school or sporting events without consent, recording conversations, enrolling C in extracurricular activities, or taking C to medical practitioners without consent, except in emergencies. The mother was also restrained from changing the children's names. The court also made orders regarding the communication between parents and professionals involved in the children's welfare, and the discharge of the Independent Children's Lawyer.

By consent, all previous orders were discharged. The mother was granted sole parental responsibility for B and C, with the children to live with her. There was to be no contact between B and the father unless by prior written agreement. Detailed contact arrangements were established for the father to spend time with C, with specific provisions for school terms, holidays, birthdays, and public holidays. Injunctions were imposed on both parents, and the Independent Children's Lawyer was discharged. The questions of costs were reserved for determination, with specific timelines set for the filing and serving of financial statements and submissions regarding costs. All other extant applications were dismissed.