State Central Authority and Bacman and Anor

The case of *State Central Authority and Bacman* involved an application before Bennett J in the Family Court of Australia. The dispute concerned an order made on 16 August 2019 for the return of a child, X, born in 2017, to Norway, pursuant to the Hague Convention of 1996. The Respondent Mother sought leave to make an oral application to vary this order.

The primary legal issue before the court was whether to grant the Respondent Mother leave to make an oral application to vary the existing return order. Specifically, the proposed variation sought to delay the child's departure from Australia until the 16 August 2019 order was registered in Norway under the 1996 Convention.

Bennett J considered the application for leave to make the oral application. The court ultimately dismissed the mother's oral application. The reasons for this decision were to be transcribed and placed on the Court file. The court also directed that certain correspondence be marked as Exhibit "A". It was noted that the father had not appeared due to the urgent nature of the mention and the time difference in Norway.