Vismay & Shaw

The case of Vismay & Shaw involved an appeal against parenting orders made by a Family Law Magistrate. The parties were parents to twins born in November 2009. The father appealed against the parenting orders made by Magistrate Monaghan on 26 September 2013. The main issues for determination were the time the children should spend with the father and the timing of the increase in that time. The Magistrate set out in detail the parties' competing proposals for the time that the children should spend with the father and how it would be increased over time. Ultimately, the Magistrate ordered that the children spend time with the father from the commencement of the 2014 academic year, during school terms, each alternate weekend from Saturday 5 pm until Monday 9 am and each Wednesday from 3.30 pm until Thursday at 4 pm. From the commencement of the 2015 academic year, during school terms, each alternate weekend from Saturday 5 pm until the end of school on Monday and each alternate Wednesday from the end of school to the end of school on Friday. From the commencement of the 2016 academic year, during school terms, each alternate weekend from the end of school on Friday to the end of school on Monday and each alternate Wednesday from the end of school to the end of school on Friday. The father argued that the effect of the orders was to reduce his time with the children by eight hours a week, and therefore submitted that the visits on Saturday should have been ordered to commence at 9 am rather than 5 pm. The Full Court dismissed the appeal and ordered the father to pay the mother's costs of the appeal.