Murgatroyd and Murgatroyd

In *Murgatroyd and Murgatroyd*, Forrest J considered applications made by the applicant father in proceedings concerning parenting orders and property adjustment. The proceedings involved the applicant father, the respondent mother, and an Independent Children’s Lawyer.

The court was required to determine several issues, including whether to grant the father leave to issue a subpoena to Legal Aid Queensland for documents relating to the mother's legal aid applications, and the procedure for identifying and obtaining documents allegedly not produced pursuant to prior subpoenas. The court also considered the father's applications to re-join and consolidate the parenting orders and property adjustment proceedings for a single trial, and whether to grant leave for the father to file contravention or contempt applications.

Forrest J granted leave for the father to subpoena Legal Aid Queensland for the mother's legal aid applications and related correspondence. The court also directed the father to provide a list of documents he asserts have not been produced by specific individuals and organisations, with the Independent Children’s Lawyer to then endeavour to obtain these documents. The father's applications to re-join and consolidate the parenting and property proceedings were dismissed, as was his alternative application to have the property proceedings heard concurrently with the parenting proceedings using existing evidence. The father was granted leave to file contravention or contempt applications, but these were not to be heard before or concurrently with the parenting proceedings trial, with any listing to be determined by the judge. Finally, the court ordered that both parties file and serve their affidavits of evidence in chief for the parenting proceedings trial by 10 June 2019.