Munts and Custer and Samuels

This matter concerned applications by Ms Munts and Ms Custer, mothers of children A and B, and Y and Z respectively, seeking orders regarding parental responsibility and contact with the children's father, Mr Samuels. The dispute centred on the terms of contact and communication between the father and his children, particularly in light of the father's incarceration. The court was asked to make final orders by consent in relation to both applicants.

The primary legal issues before the court were to determine the appropriate arrangements for the children to live with their mothers, the allocation of parental responsibility, and the terms under which the father could have contact with and communicate with his children. This included considerations of the father's custodial status, the children's welfare, and the practicalities of facilitating contact and communication.

The court made orders by consent for both Ms Munts and Ms Custer. In Ms Munts' case, she was granted sole parental responsibility for children A and B, who were to continue living with her. Contact with the father was to be limited to three visits per year, arranged by Ms Munts, with her presence required at all visits, and was made in contemplation of the father being incarcerated within two hours' drive. Communication was to be facilitated through written correspondence, with Ms Munts having discretion over the frequency and content of both incoming and outgoing letters. Similar orders were made for Ms Custer concerning children Y and Z, granting her sole parental responsibility and stipulating limited written communication between the father and children, subject to Ms Custer's review. In both matters, the father was restrained from telephoning the children under specific circumstances without the mothers' consent, and all further contact and communication were at the mothers' discretion. All outstanding applications were dismissed, and the proceedings were removed from the Active Pending Cases List.