Simon and Britton & Ors

In the matter of *Simon and Britton & Ors*, heard before Cleary J, the applicant, Ms Simon, a maternal foster grandmother, sought orders for a child, L, to live with her or, in the alternative, to spend significant time with her. Final orders made in 2011 had previously vested sole parental responsibility for L in the Secretary of the Department of Family and Community Services, with L to remain in foster care. The present hearing was specifically confined to the discrete issue of whether L should spend time and communicate with the maternal grandmother.

The central legal issue before the court was how to best promote the welfare and best interests of the child, L, in circumstances where L had expressed a desire for contact with her birth family. The court was required to consider this desire against the existing final orders and the need for stability and security in L's current foster care arrangement. The court also had to assess the genuineness of the applicant's request in light of the lack of engagement from L's mother and paternal family.

Cleary J reasoned that while the child's expressed wish for contact with her birth family was a significant factor, the paramount consideration was L's best interests, which included maintaining stability and security in her foster care. The court noted that the maternal grandmother had made a genuine application for contact, unlike other members of the birth family who had not pursued contact. Consequently, the court ordered that the maternal grandmother could exchange written correspondence with L, with the Secretary of the Department of Family and Community Services to facilitate this exchange and assist L in responding if she wished. The Secretary retained discretion to withhold unsuitable correspondence. The court further ordered that after twelve months, if L expressed interest, a supervised initial meeting would be facilitated. If L maintained interest, subsequent meetings would occur at least four times per year, with the Secretary determining the nature and supervision of these visits.