SHROEDER & DRUMMOND

In a family law matter before Ryan J, the court considered parenting and property disputes between a mother and father. The central dispute in relation to the children involved allegations of a history of physical and psychological abuse against the children and the mother, including sexual abuse of the mother and a subsequent partner by the father. The children resided with the mother, and the court was concerned about an unacceptable risk of exposure to family violence. The father was alleged to denigrate the mother and her partner to the children. In the property proceedings, the dispute concerned a small asset pool, with the mother having made greater financial and non-financial contributions, and the father having failed to pay child support. The father was also entitled to an undisclosed inheritance.

The court was required to determine the parenting arrangements for the children, specifically whether to make orders for sole parental responsibility for the mother and to what extent the father should have contact. The court also had to determine the division of the parties' property, considering their respective contributions and the father's undisclosed inheritance.

Ryan J applied the paramount consideration of the best interests of the children, as mandated by the *Family Law Act 1975* (Cth). The court found that the father's conduct posed an unacceptable risk to the children and that the mother was their primary carer. Consequently, the court ordered that the mother have sole parental responsibility and that the children live with her. Contact between the father and the children was significantly restricted, to be supervised on six occasions per year for two hours each, with the father bearing the costs of supervision. The court also made orders restraining the parties from denigrating each other in the presence of the children and established protocols for communication and notification regarding the children's welfare. In relation to property, the court ordered that the mother receive 100 per cent of the net sale proceeds of a property, excluding the father's inheritance, reflecting her greater contributions and the father's conduct.