Secretary, New South Wales Department of Family and Community Services by his delegate, Principal Officer, Barnardos Australia v MB and JW

In this case, the Secretary of the New South Wales Department of Family and Community Services sought to have two children adopted by prospective applicants. The natural parents of the children, MB and JW, opposed the adoption on the basis that it would be contrary to the best interests of the children. The court was required to determine whether the adoption would promote the welfare of the children, whether dispensing with the birth parents' consent was in the best interests of the children, and whether the best interests of the children would be promoted by making an adoption order and preferable to any other action that could be taken by law in relation to their care.

The court considered the welfare of the children to be paramount and found that the adoption by the proposed applicants would promote their welfare. The court also found that dispensing with the birth parents' consent was in the best interests of the children and that the adoption would be preferable to any other action that could be taken by law in relation to their care. The court considered the Paternal and Maternal Adoption Plans and found that they should be registered. The court also considered the proposed change of the children's surname and found that it was in the best interests of the children to change their surname to that of the proposed applicants.

The final orders made by the court were that the Paternal and Maternal Adoption Plans should be registered, the adoption orders should be made, and the children's surname should be changed to that of the proposed applicants. The court found that these orders were in the best interests of the children and would promote their welfare.