LYLE & LYLE

This matter concerned an application to vary existing orders concerning the child, X, born in 2011. The parties involved were the mother and the father. The court was required to determine the living arrangements for the child and the specific times the child would spend with each parent.

The court was asked to determine the primary residence of the child and to establish a detailed schedule for the child's time with the father, including specific dates and ongoing arrangements during school terms and holidays. Additionally, the court needed to consider provisions for facilitating the child's time with the father, including specific meeting points, and to address concerns regarding the supervision of the child during overnight stays with the father. The court also had to consider orders restraining the parents from denigrating each other and from swearing in the child's presence.

The court varied the existing orders by ordering that the child live with the mother. It then substituted new orders for the father's time with the child, detailing specific dates and times for October, November, December 2015, and January 2016. A new ongoing arrangement was established for weekends during NSW Public School Terms, with specific collection and delivery arrangements at McDonald's Family Restaurant depending on whether the month was even or odd. Holiday periods were also addressed with specific arrangements. The court further ordered that overnight time with the father occur in the substantial presence of his mother or stepfather, and liberty was granted to the mother to contact the paternal grandmother or stepfather to ensure their presence. Restraining orders were put in place prohibiting denigration of the other parent or their family and swearing in the child's presence. Finally, the proceedings were transferred to the Federal Circuit Court, Orange Circuit, for further directions.