Smithers & West

The case of Smithers & West concerned parenting orders for a child, C, born in January 2002. The dispute involved the Applicant Mother and the Respondent Father, with the matter being heard by Ryan J.

The court was required to determine the terms of parenting orders, including the allocation of parental responsibility, the child's living arrangements, and the specific arrangements for the child to spend time with the father. A significant issue was the father's alcoholism and its implications for his time with the child, necessitating the inclusion of conditions and undertakings related to his treatment and supervision during contact. The court also had to consider provisions for changeovers, restraints on parental behaviour, and the management of information regarding the child's education and medical care.

Ryan J discharged all prior parenting orders and made new orders establishing equal shared parental responsibility for C. The child was ordered to live with the mother, with detailed provisions for the father to spend time with C. These provisions were conditional upon the father undertaking treatment for his alcoholism and attending counselling, with specific timelines and reporting requirements. The orders included supervised contact initially, with a phased increase in unsupervised time contingent on the father's compliance with treatment. The court also imposed restraints on the father regarding alcohol consumption and bathing the child, and on both parents regarding denigration of each other. Further orders addressed the management of counselling and investigations related to child sexual abuse allegations, and ensured both parents had access to information about the child's schooling and medical care.

The court made various orders regarding the implementation of contact, including specific locations and times for changeovers, and provisions for telephone contact. It also included a fact sheet detailing the obligations and consequences of contravening the orders, as permitted by s 65DA(2) and s 62B of the *Family Law Act 1975*. All outstanding applications were dismissed.