M v Director General, Department of Family and Community Services

The applicant, the mother of five children, sought urgent interlocutory relief from the Court of Appeal of New South Wales. The dispute concerned three of her children, R, H, and Z, whose parental responsibility had been granted to their respective fathers by the District Court on 19 April 2013, to the exclusion of the applicant. The applicant's challenge to this District Court decision was undetermined. Specifically, the father of R and H intended to remove them to Adelaide, with their departure scheduled for the same day as the hearing of the interlocutory motion.

The legal issues before the Court of Appeal were whether to grant interim injunctive relief to prevent the removal of R and H to Adelaide, thereby maintaining the status quo pending the determination of the applicant's challenge to the District Court's orders. The court was also required to consider whether the applicant's assertion that the District Court's fact-finding was erroneous could be reagitated in the context of an application for interlocutory relief, and whether to refer the applicant to the Pro Bono Panel given her lack of means and absence of a legal aid application.

The Court of Appeal, comprising Basten and Barrett JJA and Bergin CJ in Eq, dismissed the applicant's motion seeking review of a prior decision by Ward JA that refused interim injunctive relief. The court reasoned that an appeal from a District Court judgment in these proceedings was not available as a statutory remedy. Furthermore, the court found no basis to grant injunctive relief to maintain the status quo, as there was no real prospect of setting aside the District Court's judgment. The court also refused the application for referral to the Pro Bono Panel. The summons was directed to be listed with appropriate expedition, and otherwise, the applicant's notice of motion was dismissed.