Locke & Jamison (No 2)

In the matter of *Locke & Jamison (No 2)*, Young J of the Federal Circuit Court of Australia made orders concerning the time spent between the father, Mr Locke, and the child, X. The dispute arose from the father's stated refusal to spend time with the child at B Contact Centre, despite the mother's willingness to agree to supervised time there.

The court was required to determine the interim arrangements for the child's time with the father, given the father's stance and the mother's conditional agreement. A key issue was how to ensure the child's best interests were met in light of the parties' positions and the practicalities of supervised contact.

Young J ordered that the father's time with the child be suspended. However, the order provided that if the father changed his mind about attending B Contact Centre, supervised time could resume there as accommodated by the centre. The court also directed that the child's interests be independently represented by a lawyer, requesting the Northern Territory Legal Aid Commission to make arrangements for this. Furthermore, Territory Families, Housing and Communities was ordered to provide the court with documents and information regarding any abuse allegations, assessments, investigations, and their outcomes relating to the child. The parties were also ordered to attend a child dispute conference with a family consultant to discuss the child's care, welfare, and development, with the family consultant to provide advice to the court thereafter. The proceedings were adjourned for an interim hearing on the father's time with the child and the question of supervision.