Taybor and Anderson (No 2)

This matter concerned parenting orders made by Collier J in the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia. The proceedings involved Mr Taybor (the father) and Ms Anderson (the mother) concerning their child, born in February 2005. The dispute centred on the future care, responsibility, and contact arrangements for the child, including significant restrictions on the mother's involvement and communication.

The court was required to determine a range of issues concerning the child's welfare and the parental responsibilities of Mr Taybor and Ms Anderson. These included whether to discharge prior parenting orders, the child's surname, the allocation of sole parental responsibility, the child's residence, and the terms of contact between the child and the mother. The court also had to consider orders preventing the child's removal from Australia, the mother's communication with media and authorities regarding allegations of sexual abuse, and the mother's communication with the child in a language other than English. Further issues involved the return of passports and photographs, the provision of the child's Medicare card and bluebook, and the mother's contact with the child's educational institutions and other parents.

Collier J discharged all prior parenting orders and ordered that the child be known by the surname Anderson-Taybor. The father was granted sole parental responsibility, with the child to live with him. The mother was significantly restrained from removing the child from Australia and from applying for a passport for the child. The court imposed strict conditions on the mother's contact with the child, initially requiring supervised contact at a contact centre, with unsupervised contact only permitted from the age of eleven. The mother was also restrained from discussing the child or father with journalists, making complaints of sexual abuse without notifying the Independent Children's Lawyer or the court, and speaking to the child in a language other than English, except for greetings or endearments. The father was given liberty to suspend the mother's contact for specified periods, and the mother was restrained from attending or communicating with the child's childcare, preschool, or school. The court also ordered the return of the child's passports to the father and the mother's passports to the mother, and the mother was to provide photographs and the child's bluebook to the father. The appointment of the Independent Children's Lawyer was extended for twelve months.