SCRITTON & JAVINS

[2019] FamCA 987

FAMILY COURT OF AUSTRALIA

SCRITTON & JAVINS [2019] FamCA 987

FAMILY LAW – CHILDREN – With whom a child lives.

APPLICANT: Mr Scritton

RESPONDENT: Ms Javins

INTERVENOR: Director-General Community Services

INDEPENDENT CHILDREN’S LAWYER: Ms J Lloyd

FILE NUMBER: CAC 1607 of 2019

DATE DELIVERED: 16 December 2019

PLACE DELIVERED: Canberra

PLACE HEARD: Canberra

JUDGMENT OF: Gill J

HEARING DATE: 16 December 2019

REPRESENTATION

SOLICITOR FOR THE APPLICANT: Self-representing (by telephone)

SOLICITOR FOR THE RESPONDENT: Ms Wynn

SOLICITOR FOR THE INTERVENOR: Ms Power

SOLICITOR FOR THE INDEPENDENT CHILDREN’S LAWYER: Jeanine Lloyd & Associates

Orders

IT IS ORDERED BY CONSENT THAT

1. The parties have equal shared parental responsibility for the children X, born … 2014, and Y, born … 2015.

2. The children live with the Father.

3. The children spend time with the Mother as agreed between the parties.

4. The Father, with the children, be at liberty to move to South-East Queensland by July 2020.

5. The Father may apply for a passport for the children and the Mother will do all things necessary to sign any document required.

6. The Father may travel to the United Kingdom each year with the children for no more than four weeks provided that:

   (a)He gives the Mother 90 days’ notice of his intention to travel;

   (b)He advises the Mother of the accommodation the children will reside in; and

   (c)The Mother is able to speak to the children on skype/facetime once per week.

7. The Father advise the Mother in writing of the residential address where the children are residing, his phone number and email address and advise the Mother of any change within 14 days.

8. The Mother be at liberty to telephone the children at any reasonable time.

9. The parties will engage with an NDIS Plan Manager to resolve and arrange therapy as necessary for Y.

IT IS NOTED THAT

1. The Mother is currently attempting to complete drug rehabilitation.  The parties agree to review the arrangements for the children in 24 months and if necessary, attend mediation. 

IT IS FURTHER NOTED THAT

1. The parties agree to cooperate with the Director-General for the purpose of, in the short term, resolving the arrangements for the Mother to spend time with the children. 

IT IS FURTHER ORDERED THAT

1. The trial dates for March 2020 are vacated.

Note: The form of the order is subject to the entry of the order in the Court’s records.

IT IS NOTED that publication of this judgment by this Court under the pseudonym Scritton & Javins has been approved by the Chief Justice pursuant to s 121(9)(g) of the Family Law Act 1975 (Cth).

Note: This copy of the Court’s Reasons for Judgment may be subject to review to remedy minor typographical or grammatical errors (r 17.02A(b) of the Family Law Rules 2004 (Cth)), or to record a variation to the order pursuant to r 17.02 Family Law Rules 2004 (Cth).

FAMILY COURT OF AUSTRALIA AT CANBERRA

FILE NUMBER: CAC 1607 of 2019

Mr Scritton

Applicant

And

Ms Javins

Respondent

EX-TEMPORE REASONS FOR JUDGMENT

1. This is a matter in which the Director-General has recently been joined as a party under circumstances in which the children in this case, X, born in 2014, and Y, born in 2015, faced very difficult consequences flowing from the predicament faced by their parents following the breakdown of the relationship. 

2. The particular circumstances are set out in the Family Report that was prepared in this matter by Ms B on 13 December 2019.  I mark the Family Report as Exhibit C2.

3. That Family Report sets out those circumstances wherein the children were faced with the difficult position that their primary carer, being the Father, was in a position due to his work arrangements and lack of local support, of seeking an urgent relocation to the United Kingdom (“the UK”) with the children. 

4. That comes in circumstances where the Mother, who previously had a high involvement in the care of the children, has admitted to the family report writer that she faces difficulties with the consumption of methamphetamine.  There is also strong evidence to suggest that the Mother labours under mental health difficulties which have involved her in being the subject of involuntary order or orders in the past.

5. The seriousness of the Father's situation was such that he indicated that he would be unable to continue in the current circumstances with the children in Australia and, if unable to take them, have to seriously consider relocating to the UK without them.

6. It may be observed that the children faced the very difficult circumstance of potentially not having an available carer and hence the intervention of the Director-General in these proceedings. 

7. The Family Report suggested a potential third option whereby the Father might be able to receive sufficient support if he was able to relocate with the children to South-East Queensland.  Although the Report was only issued on Friday the Mother has provided instructions to her lawyers which has enabled an agreement to be brokered between the parties, which is agreed to by the Independent Children's Lawyer and also by the Director-General.  The terms that agreement are set out at Exhibit C1.

8. That agreement gives the best possible option for the retention of the Father as the primary carer but also the retention of meaningful relationship with the Mother.  It does so by giving her the time and opportunity to attend a rehabilitation service in order to deal with her current drug use.  Her capacity to deal with that through rehabilitation leaves open a future for her to have reasonable time with the children.  That opportunity becomes available with the Father's move to South-East Queensland, which is a move that she supports by her agreement to interim orders which enable him to do that.

9. Under circumstances where it is difficult to anticipate the Mother’s progress in relation to that drug rehabilitation, and the practical consequences for the move, and the practicalities of her being able to spend time with her children, they have agreed to an arrangement that the time with the children will be by agreement between the parties.  There is also agreement for international travel which reflects the Father's heritage from the UK.  The Mother has agreed to him being able to take the children to the UK and will cooperate in the production of passports for the children.  I note the UK is a Hague Convention country.

10. While the Director-General had some reservations the Director-General indicated that the reservations were resolved if it is noted that the parties agree to the involvement of themselves with the Director-General for the purpose of sorting out how the Mother might spend time with the children in the short term.  The parties have agreed to such a notation being placed on the orders.

11. On balance, and following the exchange between the parties and myself, and taking into account the matters that are contained in the Family Report in a less than ideal situation for the children these orders represent the children's best interests at present.  The orders themselves encompass the potential for the matter to return to Court in the future following the Mother’s successful resolution of her drug issues.  It remains to be seen whether or not it will be necessary for the parties to return to Court to do so. 

12. Accordingly, I make orders in accordance with Exhibit C1.

I certify that the preceding twelve (12) paragraphs are a true copy of the reasons for judgment of the Honourable Justice Gill delivered on 16 December 2019.

Associate: 

Date:  17 December 2019