Pace and Pace

In the matter of *Pace and Pace*, Judge Jarrett of the Federal Circuit Court of Australia made orders concerning the parental responsibility and living arrangements for two children, X and Y. The dispute centred on how major long-term decisions regarding the children should be made and the extent of each parent's involvement in the children's lives.

The court was required to determine the appropriate allocation of parental responsibility for decisions concerning major long-term issues, the children's living arrangements, and the nature and extent of contact between the children and the non-resident parent. Additionally, the court needed to address practical matters such as the provision of information about the children's progress, access to school reports, and arrangements for international travel.

Judge Jarrett ordered that the respondent mother have sole parental responsibility for all decisions concerning major long-term issues, with a requirement to notify and consider the applicant father's views by email, allowing him 14 days to respond to proposals made at least 28 days in advance, except in emergencies. The children were ordered to live with the respondent mother. Contact between the children and the applicant father was to occur only when the children expressed a wish to do so, with the mother to facilitate such contact. The mother was also ordered to keep the father informed monthly about the children's progress and to provide him with copies of school reports at his expense. The children's passports were to be held by the mother, and she was required to provide the father with 56 days' notice of any overseas travel with the children, including a detailed itinerary. Finally, the court ordered that the parents engage in therapeutic counselling.