Tonks and Tonks & Anor

This matter concerned parenting and property proceedings before Johns J. The parties, the mother (Wife) and father (Husband), sought final orders by consent. In relation to parenting, the dispute centred on the risk posed by the father to the children, B and C, with the mother having previously conceded that the father was no longer an unacceptable risk. The property dispute involved the division of the parties' real property.

The court was required to determine appropriate interim parenting orders, including the nature of parental responsibility, the children's living arrangements, and the extent of the father's time with the children, taking into account the need for therapeutic intervention. Additionally, the court needed to make final property orders for the just and equitable division of the parties' assets, specifically the sale of their jointly owned real property and the distribution of the proceeds.

In making the parenting orders, the court adopted a consent-based approach, establishing equal shared parental responsibility and outlining a phased plan for the children's time with the father, commencing with supervised contact and progressing to unsupervised time. The orders also mandated family therapy to facilitate the re-establishment of relationships, with provisions for the exchange of information between relevant professionals. Injunctions were also imposed to protect the children from contact with specific individuals and from parental denigration. For the property division, the court ordered the sale of the real property, with the proceeds to be applied first to sale costs and encumbrances, then to reimburse the husband for specific expert fees, and the balance to be divided 60% to the wife and 40% to the husband. The orders also addressed the occupation of the property pending sale and the division of all other property and liabilities.