LEWIS & WACKETT

In the matter of *Lewis & Wackett*, Austin J of the Family Court of Australia considered an application concerning the parental responsibility and living arrangements for two children, E and R. The mother sought orders for the children to live with her and spend no time with the father, a proposal supported by the Independent Children’s Lawyer.

The central legal issues before the court were whether the presumption of equal shared parental responsibility was rebutted, and consequently, what final orders should be made regarding the children’s living arrangements and time spent with each parent. The court was required to assess the risk of harm to the children arising from the father's conduct.

Austin J determined that the presumption of equal shared parental responsibility was rebutted due to the father's perpetration of gross domestic violence, which posed a significant risk of physical and emotional harm to the children. Applying the principles of the *Family Law Act 1975* (Cth), particularly sections concerning the best interests of the child and the presumption of equal shared parental responsibility, the court found that it was not in the children's best interests for the father to have shared parental responsibility or to spend time with them.

Consequently, the court ordered that the mother have sole parental responsibility for the children, that the children live with the mother, and that each party be restrained from causing or permitting the children to spend any time with the father. The Independent Children’s Lawyer was discharged upon the expiration of the appeal period.