ROGERS & LENARD

In this matter before Rees J, the parties, Mr and Mrs Rogers, were in dispute regarding the living arrangements for their two children, X and Y, and the division of their matrimonial assets. The wife sought orders for the children to live with her in Melbourne, having previously attempted to relocate them without the husband's knowledge or consent. The husband sought orders for the children to live with him in Sydney. The wife had also repeatedly failed to facilitate the children spending time with the husband.

The court was required to determine the primary issue of with whom the children should live, considering the paramountcy of the children's welfare. Additionally, the court needed to address the division of the parties' property, taking into account their respective contributions and future needs.

Rees J ordered that the parents have equal shared parental responsibility for the children. Crucially, the court ordered that the children live with the husband in Sydney, and spend significant and substantial time with the wife during school terms and holidays, with detailed provisions for the timing and duration of this time. In relation to property settlement, the court found the parties' contributions to their net matrimonial assets to be equal. However, considering the husband's household has two income earners while the wife's has only one, and that the husband would bear a greater burden of the children's expenses, the court ordered a property adjustment of 5 per cent in the wife's favour. The orders further detailed the division of personal assets, the transfer of monies from a joint account, the sale of properties, and the distribution of proceeds, as well as provisions for capital gains tax and superannuation entitlements.