FAMILY LAW – De facto property proceedings – one child of the parties – dispute over commencement and conclusion of relationship – short relationship – contributions significantly favour the de facto husband – no likely future needs adjustment – leave out of time – hardship – whether there is a significant likelihood of success – inadequate reasons for delay – prejudice to the respondent due to the significant passage of time – costs of property proceedings likely to outweigh the de facto wife’s entitlement – application dismissed.

FAMILY LAW – PARENTING – Application for review – unilateral removal from school and enrolment at new school – common intention of parties – views of the child – acrimonious co-parenting relationship – best interests of the child – application for review dismissed

FAMILY LAW – Property – part-heard – drawdown - injunction – administration of justice

FAMILY LAW – PROPERTY – Final hearing – De facto relationship of some 30 years – Out of time issue – De facto husband seeks leave to proceed out of time and a property settlement of 55% in his favour – De facto wife opposes the out of time application – De facto wife argues that it is not just and equitable to alter the parties’ interests – Stanford sought to be applied – Assets and liabilities at trial in the individual names of the parties – Where the Court declares a de facto relationship existed between 1991 and 2021 – Just and equitable for there to be an adjustment of the parties’ interests – Orders made for the sale of real property – Division of property 45/55% in favour of the de facto wife – Justice and equity.

FAMILY LAW – contravention application – multiple allegations of contravention of orders – allegations predate the last contested final hearing – unnecessary to determine whether application an abuse of process – allegations not made out on balance of probabilities – some allegations de minimis – contravention application dismissed

FAMILY LAW – PARENTING – Both parents with limited capacity to act in best interests of children – Findings of family violence – Weight given to views of Children – Leaving door open for children to have relationship with the other parent

FAMILY LAW – CONTRAVENTION – No intentional failure to comply – Made reasonable attempts at complying – Lack of evidence of contraventions – Contravention dismissed

FAMILY LAW – Spousal maintenance liability order discharged – all outstanding amounts reduced to a nil sum – significant change of circumstances of both the applicant and respondent - respondent remarried

FAMILY LAW - PROPERTY – de facto relationship – 20 years – 2 daughters – relationship ended March 2009 - ongoing financial connection with joint property- de facto husband acquired whole of joint property as a result of debtor’s petition by de facto wife- proceedings commenced 2017 – unfortunate procedural history- alteration of property interests under s90SM – orders for payment of $75,000 and otherwise sale of property

FAMILY LAW – PROPERTY – Modest asset pool – 40 years of cohabitation – Broad-brush approach – Overall contributions equal – Future needs adjustment

FAMILY LAW – PARENTING – where the mother seeks orders that the children live with her and she have responsibility for major long-term decisions, where the children have lived with the paternal grandparents since late 2021, where there are issues of family violence, alcohol and drug abuse, child neglect and child protection – where it is in the best interests of the children to remain in the primary care of the paternal grandparents

FAMILY LAW – property proceedings – length of relationship – short de facto relationship – initial contributions – inheritance – loans – post-separation contributions – impact of short relationship on earning capacity – unreliable witness

FAMILY LAW – Parenting – serious allegations of family violence – Father charged with serious criminal offences against Mother – Father withdraws on first day of final hearing – consideration of unacceptable risk – where the three eldest children refuse to spend time and communicate with Father – where safety of children and the Mother requires a no time order FAMILY LAW – Parenting – serious allegations of family violence – Father charged with serious criminal offences against Mother – Father withdraws on first day of final hearing – consideration of unacceptable risk – where the three eldest children refuse to spend time and communicate with Father – where safety of children and the Mother requires a no time order

FAMILY LAW – Application summarily dismissed – proceedings are frivolous, vexatious and an abuse of process, and have no reasonable prospect of success within the meaning of s 102QAB of the Family Law Act 1975 (Cth) – application sought to re-agitate issues other previous proceedings

FAMILY LAW – PARENTING – drug use – physical discipline – verbal abuse – neglect – lack of parenting boundaries – parental denigration – lack of insight – stability for children – evidence of current risks – amelioration of risk – injunctions – joint decision making – international travel – trial commenced pre-6 May amendments to the Family Law Act

FAMILY LAW – PROPERTY – leave to proceed out of time application – five years after the statutory date when proceedings ought to have been instituted - where the Applicant submits he has a prima facie case – where the applicant fails to satisfy the hardship requirement – no prima facie case – where the wife would be at detriment to plead her case after such time – delay not explained satisfactorily – application dismissed

FAMILY LAW – PARENTING - Substantial consent orders made – child aged 11 – benefit of overseas travel for the child – family therapy to continue until the child turns 15 - no orders as to the ICL’s costs

FAMILY LAW –  parenting and property – final orders – determination of whether one parent reneged on agreement for the family to move and live overseas – whether one parent coercive and controlling – whether the child should live with her mother or her father – father lives in Melbourne and mother lives in Country B – question of which parent will best support the child’s relationship with the other parent – whether child settled where currently living – choice between child lives with one of two good parents – property division proceedings – determination of extent of one parents inheritance and weight to be given to that inheritance – determination of disputed items in pool of property including treatment of paid legal fees and proceeds of sale of shares – consideration of contribution – whether equal as alleged by father or 60/40 as alleged by mother – contribution determined to be 57/43 – consideration of section 75(2) factors – whether should be nil or 10% - determination section 75(2) factors should be 7% - consideration of dollar amount of adjustments as well as percentage – overall division of assets 64/36 – agreed equality of superannuation split – proposed orders in default of payment need clarification – final orders made with direction for parties to bring in agreed default provision

FAMILY LAW – Property – Priority Property Pool case – Application to restrain a solicitor from acting – Where respondent defacto husband claims to have contacted community legal service representing defacto wife – Decision not to restrain legal service from acting for de facto wife – Not in interests of justice to delay proceedings further – Application for extension of time to apply for property orders due to hardship pursuant to section 44(6) accepted – Orders to divide chattels between parties.

 FAMILY LAW –PROCEDURE - Stay application refused – further opportunity to reagitate – Appellate Court more appropriate forum

 FAMILY LAW – Parenting – partial agreement on consent orders- remaining issue time with father – recusal application during father’s evidence -supported by ICL –  orders for recusal made

FAMILY LAW – PARENTING – Contravention – Mother concedes all charged contraventions without reasonable excuse – Mother argues no sanction should apply – Mother refuses to enter bond – Father seeks maximum penalty – Mother has previously been found to have contravened orders without reasonable excuse – Sanction necessary – Degree of appropriate penalty – Whether a fine can be order in lieu of bond – Where it is found that a bond must be ordered first, and a fine can only occurred after a party has failed to enter the ordered bond – Father seeks costs – Costs awarded – Whether claimed costs are reasonable

FAMILY LAW – Parenting – final orders – child live with mother – mother have sole decision making relating to health and education – father spend each alternate Saturday with child – further time between father and child including overnight time as agreed between parties – where the father changes his position during proceedings – father to enrol in a parenting program 

FAMILY LAW – Application to review orders of Judicial Registrar.

FAMILY LAW – Parenting – application for adjournment – family report writer unavailable for cross examination – notice to the family report writer was not sufficiently given – not in the best interest of the child to adjourn the matter – application dismissed.

FAMILY LAW – Review of interlocutory property orders - 4 subject children – complex medical, behavioural and learning needs for both 17-year-old and 12-year-old subject children - Where the parties seek to vary interlocutory orders to sell the family home – Wife brings evidence to support the maintenance of the family home - Whether there has been a change of circumstances and/or the existence of a new fact that warrants the setting aside of the interlocutory orders – Whether the interlocutory orders should be enforced with a variation - Interlocutory orders set aside and fresh orders made. 

FAMILY LAW – PARENTING – where the subject child is almost 12 years old – where the child suffers anxiety – where the father seeks to have the child live with him full-time in circumstances where the child has never lived with the father nor had overnight time and has expressed anxiety and fear at the thought of spending overnight time with father – child feels unsafe with the father – child has suffered from further anxiety upon mother being diagnosed with life threatening illness –father’s lack of insight - child to live with mother – spend no time with the father 

FAMILY LAW – DIVORCE – respondent lacks capacity to participate in proceedings – efforts of court and solicitor for the application to appoint a litigation guardian for respondent unsuccessful, including by request to Attorney-General pursuant to rule 3.16(4) of the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Family Law) Rules 2021 (Cth) – hearing of application in absence of respondent or a litigation guardian appointed on her behalf – consideration of evidence of separation under the one roof in context of respondent’s illness and disability and applicant’s role caring for her – unreliable corroborative evidence – application dismissed.

FAMILY LAW – CHILDREN – Spend time with orders – Where term poor parental communication was inappropriately used to describe an entrenched pattern of behaviour towards the mother and child – Where no physical violence – Where father alleged to control mother by range of behaviours including harassment, intimidation, humiliation, monitoring, constant criticism – Whether father posed risks arising from alcohol use, mental health condition or family violence  – Where father lacked insight – Where child has a loving and meaningful relationship with the father – Where child would be exposed to unacceptable risk of psychological and emotional harm in the care of the father – Whether parenting coordinator and/or use of AI tool to moderate father’s communication style can mitigate the identified risks of harm – Where the risk posed by the father can only be mitigated by final orders for supervised and restricted time. 

FAMILY LAW – ICL Costs – financial hardship – ICL’s request for costs against the mother dismissed

FAMILY LAW – PROPERTY – marriage of seven years; cohabitation of four years and two months – no children of marriage – husband seeks alteration of property interests – wife opposes application – application of Stanford – consideration of ss79(2) and 79(4) Family Law Act 1975 (Cth) – husband made no direct financial contributions and only limited indirect financial and non-financial contributions – finding it is not just and equitable to make an order pursuant to section 79 – application dismissed.

FAMILY LAW - PROCEDURE – leave granted to the applicant and the respondent to use documents filed in these proceedings for criminal proceedings

FAMILY LAW – PARENTING - issue of telephone communication – use of carriage service to make a threat – audio only communication - parties reached a consent position  

FAMILY LAW – Parenting –  where children alleged to have been removed by force from the “live with” parent in a foreign place – grandparent alleged to have aided and abetted contravention of final orders and recovery order – whether a grandparent should be restrained from leaving Australia – where it is alleged a parent retains children in a foreign country and a grandparent aids and abets that retention- consideration of impact of culture and customary law of a foreign country –  where it is alleged children detained to enforce return of dowry – dowry paid in animals more than a decade ago – whether injunctions may support return of children to the “live with” parent –  whether any risk of flight – potential serious penalties if mother’s case made out, including imprisonment – whether section 92 of the Constitution implied freedom of movement – interim injunctions made.   

FAMILY LAW – Parenting – final hearing – discreet issue – where the Mother seeks an absolute restraint on the child being exposed to firearms – where the Mother has traumatic personal experience involving firearms – where the Father is a keen, responsible gun owner and enjoys hunting – where there is a meaningful relationship between the Father and child without exposure to firearms – whilst there is no unacceptable physical risk to the child being exposed to firearms in Father’s presence and supervision, dismissing the Mother’s application would likely result in the child becoming embroiled in a ‘loyalty conflict’, strain co parenting trust and communication and have an adverse impact on the Mother’s long term mental health with flow on adverse effects on her parenting capacity – best interests of child to order restraint on exposure to firearms until 18 years of age. 

FAMILY LAW – PARENTING - family violence – pornography - real and significant risk of emotional and psychological harm - best interests of the children – no time   

FAMILY LAW – COSTS – Application for the father to pay the mother’s costs of an Application for Review – where the father achieved a less desired result at the Review Hearing than before the Senior Judicial Registrar- Whilst any hearing of a review application is to be heard as an original hearing parties should still carefully consider the merits of a review of a Registrar’s decision in circumstances where parties are at risk of costs in the event their review application is unsuccessful – orders for costs made. 

FAMILY LAW – Parenting and Property orders – 9-year-old subject child – where the father has been inconsistent with complying with spend time with orders – history of family violence – where the mother seeks sole parental responsibility and conditions subsequent should the father fail to spend time with child –– where the father seeks to jointly make decisions –  where the father seeks to amend child’s name to include his last name –  property adjustment orders – where a global approach is taken – where there is a stark financial disparity between the parties –  where the mother seeks a property adjustment reflective of the impact of family violence and there being no prospect of the payment of child support – adjustment of 60% of property pool in favour of the mother  

FAMILY LAW – Parenting and property – Application to proceed undefended – Where respondent mother has failed to attend hearing – Where there was sufficient notice and opportunity for respondent mother to attend – Decision to proceed undefended – Child left in applicant father’s care indefinitely and without notice while mother overseas – Mother yet to return from overseas – Father to have sole parental responsibility for child – Child live with father – Watchlist order for five year period to prevent mother from removing the child if she returns to Australia – Parties to retain all property in their possession – Where mother has retained substantial value of gold owned by parties – Parties to be solely liable for and indemnify the other against any liability – Where father’s mother has contributed significant sums to parties – Father to retain equity in former matrimonial home. 

FAMILY LAW – Child support enforcement application – where Father in arrears of child support – whether a superannuation payment split order can be made pursuant to Child Support Act – superannuation payment split orders can only be in section 79 or 90SM property proceedings – parties seek to settle debt by way of cash payment and superannuation split – section 105 of Child Support (Registration and Collection) Act 1988 does not vary section 90XS & 90XT of the Family Law Act 1975 –  informal procedures adopted –  where final property orders have already been made – final property orders set aside by consent –  see s 79A(1A) not section 79A(1)(a) applied –  new property orders made – superannuation split orders made by consent – procedural fairness must be provided to Trustee of superannuation fund –  after orders and reasons provided evidence of procedural fairness provided –  orders made.  

FAMILY LAW – PARENTING – Benefit of meaningful relationship to the child – Need for self-awareness and impact of behaviours – Risks capable of being minimised – time to incrementally increasing  FAMLY LAW – PROPERTY – Small property pool – Greater overall financial contributions by one party – Future needs adjustment  

FAMILY LAW – Divorce – contested application – validity of Country B marriage – forum non conveniens – whether Australia is a clearly inappropriate forum – pending application for restitution of conjugal rights in Country B – unsuccessful application for anti-suit injunction in Country B – presumption of validity of the marriage is not rebutted – nature of the order sought by the wife in the Country B proceedings – parties having connections to Australia – divorce granted.  

FAMILY LAW – CHILDREN – where Mother alleges coercive controlling violence and manipulation of children by Father – where Mother seeks continuation of longstanding equal time arrangement – where Father seeks the children live with him and spend time with Mother in accordance with their wishes – orders made as sought by Mother.  FAMILY LAW – PROPERTY – where De Facto Wife’s evidence is preferred because De Facto Husband’s evidence is found to be unsatisfactory and unreliable – where the De Facto Husband has failed to comply with disclosure obligations – where transactions asserted by De Facto Husband found not to be genuine – where obfuscatory conduct on the part of the De Facto Husband hampered the ability of the Court to make findings sought by him – where expenditure on legal fees is added back – where significant adjustment in favour of De Facto Wife pursuant to s 90SF(3) found to be warranted.

FAMILY LAW – Property – Where wife alleges substantial failure to disclose by husband – Husband unrepresented – Application for adjournment in circumstances where husband recently became unrepresented – Not infrequent difficulties with section 102NA representation in this court – Unintended consequences of section 102NA – Decision not to proceed undefended – Final hearing adjourned to allow appointment of another solicitor for husband by Legal Aid Victoria – Not insignificant volume of documents and material to be prepared – Costs thrown away by reason of adjournment fixed but to be determined at final hearing. 

FAMILY LAW – Parenting – Child aged 9 – Where the child has not interacted with the father for four years – Where the father seeks parenting orders to resume a relationship with the child – Where the relationship was severed as he was sentenced to a term of imprisonment – Where the mother seeks a decree pursuant to s 102QAB of the Family Law Act 1975 (Cth) – Consideration of the welfare of the child’s primary carer – Whether the continued proceedings amount to harm – Family violence – Assessment of harm – Harmful proceedings order made – Application dismissed 

FAMILY LAW – De facto property settlement proceedings – ten-year relationship – two children – modest property – financial proceedings re-opened due to inheritance – who retains the family dog – hearing conducted on the papers – just and equitable outcome. 

FAMILY LAW – PROPERTY – where husband was in persistent default of his obligations to file documents – where husband failed to avail himself of two opportunities to cross-examine the wife – where matter proceeded on the wife’s evidence – where wife is solely responsible for the care of the parties’ children – where wife has been out of the workforce for 19 years – where husband has a very significant earning capacity.  FAMILY LAW – SPOUSAL MAINTENANCE – where wife is solely reliant upon investment income – where husband has very significant earning capacity.  FAMILY LAW – CHILD SUPPORT – where parties expected their children to be educated at private schools – how private school fees should be paid – whether further departure or lump sum orders are appropriate

FAMILY LAW – PROPERTY – Leave to institute proceedings out of time – Prima facie case not established – Hardship not established – leave refused

FAMILY LAW – COSTS – costs application following unmeritorious application to review interim parenting orders made by a Senior Judicial Registrar

nding the valuation of the wife’s pension arrived at by applying the provisions of Family Law Act and Regulations regard must be had to the nature, form and characteristics of such superannuation interest - Where the Husband can elect to receive a splitting order in his favour as a tax free cash lump sum and the time for the wife to be able, as of right, to commute her pension has passed - Where the requirement to achieve justice and equity permeates the entire s 79 process - Where the wife’s pension ought to be dealt with in a separate pool of property – Finding of equal contributions to both pools of property – Finding that no adjustment ought to be made in respect of either party – Finding that to effect a percentage adjustment of a figure calculated by the Regulations is an artificial exercise and is neither just or equitable - Orders made for an equal distribution of the substantive property pool – Orders made for a lump sum payment to be made to the husband out of the wife’s pension.