SHEA & MORGAN

In the matter of SHEA & MORGAN, Watts J determined parenting orders concerning the children V and S. The dispute involved the allocation of parental responsibility, the children's living arrangements, and the nature and extent of time the children would spend with their father. The court was required to establish a framework for the children's care and contact with both parents, taking into account the need for a re-introduction of the father into the children's lives and the ongoing therapeutic needs of the family.

The court was required to determine the primary caregiver for the children in relation to long-term decisions, establish the children's ordinary residence, and set out a schedule for the children to spend time with their father. Crucially, the court had to consider the conditions under which this time would occur, including the involvement of the father's partner, the necessity of family therapy, and the father's engagement with psychiatric treatment. The court also addressed communication protocols between the parents, restrictions on parental behaviour, and provisions for international travel and the exchange of children's passports.

Watts J ordered that the mother have parental responsibility for all major long-term issues, subject to consultation and genuine effort to reach joint decisions with the father, with the mother retaining the final decision-making power if agreement could not be reached. The children were ordered to ordinarily live with the mother. A phased approach to the father's time with the children was established, commencing with supervised time and gradually increasing to alternate weekends, with specific provisions for holidays and special days like Mother's Day and Father's Day. The implementation of unsupervised time was contingent on the successful completion of family therapy and the father's psychiatric treatment. The orders also included detailed provisions for communication, including Skype contact, and restrictions on parental conduct, such as denigrating the other parent and approaching the other's residence. The court also made orders regarding the costs of the proceedings and the Independent Children's Lawyer.