MAYSE & AMBER

In *Mayse & Amber*, the Family Court of Australia considered an application by a mother seeking interim orders to allow her child to travel overseas for a holiday. The father, who resided overseas, consented to the holiday but opposed the child travelling on an Australian passport, insisting on the child using a passport from their country of origin. The child was an Australian resident and citizen, and Australia required her to travel on her Australian passport.

The court was required to determine whether to grant the mother leave to apply for an Australian passport for the child without the father's consent or signature, and whether to permit the child to travel internationally. The central legal issue revolved around the best interests of the child, specifically in the context of conflicting parental responsibilities regarding international travel and passport issuance, and the practical difficulties arising from the father's overseas residence.

Justice Dawe reasoned that while the father consented to the holiday, his objection to the Australian passport created an inconsistency that would prevent the child from travelling. Given the booked travel dates and the child's Australian citizenship, the court found it was not reasonably practicable to continue with equal shared parental responsibility on this specific issue. The court considered the best interests of the child under section 60CC of the *Family Law Act 1975* (Cth), noting the difficulties in exercising joint parental responsibility. The court also granted the mother leave to serve the father via email due to his overseas residence.

The court made orders permitting the mother to apply for an Australian passport for the child without the father's consent or signature, and allowed the child to travel internationally, provided she returned to Australia by a specified date and her Australian passport was surrendered to the court registry upon her return. These orders were made on an interim basis, allowing the child to enjoy the holiday while preserving the father's ability to contest final parenting orders regarding the child's permanent residence.