SEELEY & SEELEY (No.2)

[2019] FCCA 2634

FEDERAL CIRCUIT COURT OF AUSTRALIA

SEELEY & SEELEY (No.2) [2019] FCCA 2634

Catchwords:
FAMILY LAW – Spousal maintenance – interim orders where wife was unaware of overseas divorce – where actual date of separation is disputed – where husband fails to produce evidence – spousal and rental payments ordered.

Legislation:

Family Law Act 1975 (Cth)

Applicant: MS SEELEY

Respondent: MR SEELEY

File Number: ADC 3218 of 2019

Judgment of: Judge Young

Hearing date: 2 September 2019

Date of Last Submission: 2 September 2019

Delivered at: Darwin

Delivered on: 2 September 2019

REPRESENTATION

Counsel for the Applicant: B S Gill Lawyers

Solicitors for the Applicant: Mr Childs

Counsel for the Respondent: Websters Lawyers

Solicitors for the Respondent: Mr Heinrich

THE COURT ORDERS UNTIL FURTHER ORDER

1. That the husband continue to pay the sum of $375.00 per week to the wife by way of spousal maintenance.

2. That the husband pay rent in the sum of $420.00 per week on the property situate at C Street, Suburb D.

3. That the time for the husband to file and serve a Response, affidavit in support and financial statement be extended to close of business on 20 September 2019.

4. That the wife file and serve an amended financial statement that is complete within 14 days of the date of this order.

5. That the parties attend a Conciliation Conference with a Registrar of the Court at Adelaide on 9 October 2019 at 9.15am.

6. That the Applicant pay the Conciliation Conference fee in accordance with the Family Law (Fees) Regulation 2012 at least 28 days prior to the Conciliation Conference unless otherwise exempted from payment.

7. That the Respondent reimburse the Applicant one half of the Conciliation Conference fee within 14 days thereafter.

8. That within 28 days the parties provide mutual informal discovery of all documents in their respective possession, custody or control.

9. That the parties prepare a draft joint statement of assets and liabilities on or before 9 October 2019.

10. That with respect of any asset the value of which is not agreed the parties obtain a joint written valuation at their joint expense to be available within 14 days prior to the conciliation conference.

11. That in the event either party seeks a superannuation splitting order that a copy of the proposed splitting order be served upon the Trustee of the superannuation fund at least 14 days prior to the conciliation conference.

12. That leave is granted to the parties to inspect only and the parties’ legal representatives (and to include the Independent Children’s Lawyer (if appointed), any family consultant and family report writer) to inspect and copy the material produced by Suburb E Family Medical Centre pursuant to the subpoena filed on 21 August 2019 (SAVE AND EXCEPT for those marked confidential). Information cannot be disclosed to persons not a party to these proceedings, save and except for expert witnesses NOTING leave is granted on the condition that all copies are destroyed at the conclusion of the matter and that the legal representatives keep the copies in their possession until that time.

13. In the event any party (or the Independent Children’s Lawyer) in these proceedings seeks to rely upon any material produced pursuant to subpoena then such documents shall be put before the Court by way of affidavit to be filed and served on or before the next court date as follows:

    (a)setting out short reasons for the inclusion of each set of documents, including reference to any current pleadings, and

    (b)annexing such material as is considered relevant, with

    (c)the affidavit to be paginated, indexed and exhibits tagged.

14. That the matter be adjourned to 23 October 2019 at 9.30am for further directions.

15. That both parties produce to the other fourteen (14) days prior to the conciliation conference, documents as prescribed in Annexure A to this order.

IT IS NOTED that publication of this judgment under the pseudonym Seeley & Seeley (No.2) is approved pursuant to s.121(9)(g) of the Family Law Act 1975 (Cth).

ANNEXURE A

Documents to be produced prior to conciliation conference:

• List of all bank accounts, details of account numbers, passbooks and bank statements for the previous 12 months.

• Details of credit union/building society or other like deposit passbooks and statements for the previous 12 months.

• Details and records of any investments including stocks and shares.

• Income Tax Returns and assessments for the previous 3 financial years.

• Social Security pension or payment details.

• Details/records of long service leave accrued.

• Details/records of overtime worked in the previous 12 months.

• Superannuation documentation including a completed “Superannuation: Information Required for Family Law Matters” form or a form which substantially complies with that form.

• Valuation of real estate.

• Valuation of chattels including car(s).

• Records/details of any life assurance or disability insurance.

• Details/records of any of the above re children.

• School reports.

• Medical or psychiatric reports.

• Medical certificates.

FEDERAL CIRCUIT COURT
OF AUSTRALIA
AT DARWIN

ADC 3218 of 2019

MS SEELEY

Applicant

And

MR SEELEY

Respondent

REASONS FOR JUDGMENT

Ex-Tempore

1. These reasons for judgment were delivered orally. They have been corrected from the transcript. Grammatical errors have been corrected and an attempt has been made to render the orally delivered reasons amenable to being read.

2. This is an application for urgent spousal maintenance. I have already given some brief reasons on the last occasion this matter came before me. 

3. Mr Heinrich appears for the husband today.  The husband has not complied with the order I made to file responding materials by 28 August, which was last Wednesday. Consequently, the only information I have before me, in substance, is the information that was before me on 19 August when I made that urgent order in the sum of $375 a week, which, according to the wife, was an amount that she was receiving in any event. 

4. Mr Heinrich, for the husband, told me that, according to his instructions the wife’s affidavit in support is seriously misleading when she suggests that until February this year she believed she had a subsisting marriage with her husband and on receipt of divorce documents from Country B she realised that she had, in substance, been deserted. That is the gist of her affidavit material. Mr Heinrich says that, according to his instructions, the parties actually separated in 2014 when the husband left the former matrimonial home and has not been back since.

5. The discrepancy in those claims is dramatic but in the absence of any sworn material from the husband I am satisfied that I should continue to act on the basis of the sworn material that is before me, which is as I have mentioned.

6. In the circumstances, I do not propose to vary the order I made for urgent spousal maintenance in the sum of $375 a week and I also propose to make an order that the husband is to pay the rent on the property occupied by the wife, C Street, Suburb D in the sum of $420 a week until further order.

I certify that the preceding six (6) paragraphs are a true copy of the reasons for judgment of Judge Young

Date:  17 September 2019