Worth and Worth (No 3)

Forrest J considered applications by the father, Mr Worth, and the mother, Ms Worth, in family law proceedings. The father sought to access $175,000 held in trust to fund his return from the UK for employment purposes. The mother sought to strike out certain allegations of fact from her own affidavit and the entirety of the affidavits of her brother and friend. The dispute also involved the admissibility of a transcript from prior Magistrates Court proceedings where findings of fact were made regarding allegations of domestic violence, which the Magistrate had determined the father had not committed.

The court was required to determine whether the affidavits of the mother's brother and friend should be struck out, and whether specific parts of the mother's affidavit should be struck out. Additionally, the court had to consider the admissibility of the Magistrates Court transcript in the current proceedings and whether the father should be permitted to access the funds held in trust for his return to Australia.

Forrest J allowed the father to adduce the entire transcript of the Magistrates Court proceedings into evidence, conditioned on its complete admission. The court ordered that significant portions of the mother's affidavit be struck out, along with the entirety of the affidavits of her brother and friend. The reasoning for striking out these affidavits and parts of the mother's affidavit is not detailed in the provided text, but the decision implies that the struck-out material was deemed inadmissible or irrelevant.

The court dismissed the father's application for access to the trust funds, finding that he had adduced little evidence to support his claim. However, the court ordered both parties to depose in their final affidavits to the total amount spent on legal costs and outlays in both the Magistrates Court and current proceedings, and to detail the source of those funds. All other applications made by the father in his Application in a Case dated 28 October 2016 were dismissed.