LLEWELLYN & HYDE

The case of Llewellyn & Hyde concerned a dispute between parents regarding the issuance of a passport for their child. The court was required to determine whether the decision-making authority for such an application fell under the definition of "major long-term issues" as contemplated by the relevant legislation.

The central legal issue before the court was the interpretation of section 64B(3) of the Family Law Act 1975 (Cth), which allows parenting orders to allocate responsibility for decisions about "major long-term issues" concerning a child. The court had to consider whether the issue of a child's passport constituted a "major long-term issue" as defined in section 4(1) of the Act, particularly in light of the enumerated examples such as education, religious and cultural upbringing, health, name, and changes to living arrangements.

The court reasoned that while a passport is necessary for overseas travel, and such travel could potentially involve long-term relocation, the act of issuing a passport itself is not inherently a "living arrangement" or a matter directly related to changes in living arrangements. Although the question of passport responsibility could be conceptualised as a long-term issue, it was not explicitly defined as such within the legislation. The court concluded that, in the absence of specific parliamentary intent to classify passport applications as a major long-term issue, it should be treated as a discrete matter. Consequently, unless a parenting order expressly addresses parental responsibility for passport applications or modifies it to give effect to other orders, both parents are generally required to consent to the application.