Peake & Cousins (No 2)

Peake & Cousins (No 2) was an appeal in the Family Court of Australia concerning an application made in the context of an ongoing family law dispute. The mother, the appellant, sought various orders to support her appeal, including the provision of transcripts, an extension of time to appeal certain orders, and the adducing of further evidence. The father, the respondent, opposed these applications.

The court had to decide on the mother’s requests for a transcript of the proceedings, an extension of time to appeal certain orders, and permission to adduce further evidence. The court exercised its discretion to order the provision of a transcript for specific days of the proceedings, granted leave for an extension of time to appeal particular orders, and dismissed the application to adduce further evidence. The court considered the necessity and probative value of the proposed evidence in relation to the grounds of appeal.

The court discharged certain orders made by the Regional Appeal Registrar and ordered the procurement and provision of a transcript of the first and third days of the proceedings before the trial judge. The court granted leave for the appellant to file an amended notice of appeal to include her appeal from specific orders but denied the request for an extension of time beyond a specified date for reliance on a transcript of a second day of proceedings. The court dismissed the application to adduce further evidence as it found the proposed evidence to lack probative value.

The court issued orders discharging certain previous orders, requiring the procurement and provision of specific transcripts, granting leave to file an amended notice of appeal with specific conditions, and dismissing the applications to extend time and adduce further evidence, with no order as to costs.