WESTLAKE & WESTLAKE

In *Westlake & Westlake*, Carew J considered applications to vary or discharge final parenting orders made in February 2014 following a defended hearing. The original orders had been made after the trial judge found the father posed a risk of emotional harm to the children due to his beliefs about the mother and his inability to foster the children's relationship with her. The judge had imposed long-term supervision to protect the children from these beliefs.

The central legal issue before the court was whether there had been a significant change in circumstances since the 2014 orders were made to warrant a reconsideration of those orders, particularly in light of the supervisor withdrawing services in March 2014 and the father having had no contact with the children since that time. The court also had to consider the best interests of the children in determining the applications.

Carew J applied the principles established in *Rice & Asplund* (1979) FLC 90-725, which govern the reconsideration of final parenting orders. The court found no evidence to suggest that the father's beliefs about the mother had changed. Consequently, it was determined that there had not been a significant change in circumstances to justify varying the existing orders. Furthermore, the court concluded that further litigation would not be in the best interests of the children.

The court ordered that paragraphs 4 and 5 of the 2014 parenting order be discharged and substituted with an order that the father not spend time with the children. The competing applications by both the mother and the father for variation and/or discharge of the 2014 parenting order were otherwise dismissed.