How does the court make decisions about children?

image of legal adviceIf you have experienced domestic and family violence, it’s important to get legal adviceACTNSWNTQldSATasVicWA about what decisions the court may make about your children in your case.

 

 

A Parenting Order is an order made by the Family Courts which can cover things like:

 

image of a housewho your children live with and spends time with

 

 

 

image of person thinking about child• who will make big long-term decisions about your children (called parental responsibility)

 

 

 

image of a person on the phone• how parents will communicate with each other

 

 

 

 

image of phone contact• how your children will communicate with the parent they aren’t with—for example by phone, Skype or email

 

 

 

 

image of a school bag• where your children will go to school, changing your children’s name or overseas travel.

 

 

 

image of courtWhen making Parenting Orders, the court considers what is in your child’s best interests by considering a number of factors. Protecting your child from harm, including from domestic and family violence is the main thing the court considers.

 

 

 

image of intimidationThe court also considers whether there has been any domestic and family violence and any Domestic Violence Orders, as well as other factors. For more information see how does the court consider domestic and family violence?

 

 

 

 

image of person thinking about courtEvery case is different, so it’s important to get legal adviceACTNSWNTQldSATasVicWA about your situation.

 

 

 

 

image of a gavelParenting Orders are binding on the parents and can be enforced by the Family Courts.

 

 

 

image of older person sitting in chairParents (including same-sex parents), grandparents or anyone concerned about your children’s welfare can apply for Parenting Orders.

 

 

 

It is important to get legal adviceACTNSWNTQldSATasVicWA before you start a case in the Family Courts for Parenting Orders to find out if this is a good option for you.

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image of person thinking about child

Parental Responsibility means the big long-term decisions about your children. For example—decisions about where your children go to school, what their religion should be and decisions about their health. Both parents automatically have parental responsibility for children until they turn 18. This is called ‘joint decision making’.

Parental responsibility is different to how much time your children spend with each parent.

However sometimes—for example if there has been domestic and family violence, child abuse or if it’s not in the best interests of the child—the court may decide that one parent should makes these decisions by themselves. This is called ‘sole parental responsibility’. Sometimes a court will decide the parents have joint decision making for some decisions and one parent has sole parental responsibility for other decisions.

Also see how does the court consider domestic and family violence?

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image of child being led awayThe Family Courts will look at what is in the best interests of the child when they decide where your children will live and how much time they spend with the other parent.

This includes looking at your children’s safety and whether there has been any domestic and family violence.

Every case is different so it’s important to get legal adviceACTNSWNTQldSATasVicWA about your situation.

For more information see what orders will the court make if there’s been domestic and family violence?

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image of legal adviceIf you have experienced domestic and family violence, it’s important to get legal adviceACTNSWNTQldSATasVicWA about what the court may consider to be in the best interests of your child.

 

 

The Family Courts decide what is in a child’s best interests when they make Parenting Orders.
To do this they must look at factors about:

 

image of child and parent hugging• the child’s best interest

• if the child is an Aboriginal child or Torres Strait Islander child- their right enjoy his or her culture

 

 

 

The Family Courts look at the following things to help decide what is in a child’s best interest:

 

 

image of intimidation• what arrangements promote the safety of your children and the person or people who care for your children. This includes being safe from being subject to or exposed to family violence as well as safe from abuse, neglect or other harm.

 

 

 

 

 

image of a protection order• any views expressed by your children

 

 

 

 

image of a child questioning• the developmental, psychological emotional and cultural needs of your children

 

 

 

 

 

image of child running to parent• the capacity the parents or carers of your children to provide for your children’s developmental, psychological, emotional and cultural needs

 

 

 

 

image of person playing with child• the benefit of the children having a relationship with the other parent, carer or other significant people if it is safe to do so

 

 

 

 

image of children wearing Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander flags• if your children are Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander— the court must consider your children’s right to enjoy their culture by providing support, opportunity and encouragement for them to do so. The court must also look at the impact of any proposed orders on your children’s ability to exercise this right.

 

 

 

 

image of a checklist• anything else that may be relevant to your children

 

 

 

 

Every case is different, so it’s important to get legal adviceACTNSWNTQldSATasVicWA about your situation.

 

For more information on the best interests of the child, see resources. Also see how does the court consider domestic and family violence?

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