An out of court agreement has recently been reached to allow a 12-year-old girl in NSW to spend access visits with her mother in South Australia, on the proviso that mother and child reside with the maternal grandparents during the visit. The child has asked that an occasional night be spent alone together with mother and child. Both mother and child would continue to reside with the grandparents, only having a night to themselves once out of every visit.
There has never been harm to the child. Previous access visits (since 2006) have gone extremely well. The mother is not a flight risk. It is the child who has requested that a night alone be spent with mother and child.
An argument could be made that if orders are being complied with (i.e that mother and daughter are residing with the grandparents for each visit) Then there is no need to seek the court's permission in what is essentially no deviation from orders.
The mother has reports which are very favourable - these reports are from health care professionals as well as family members.
The father is extremely hostile to the mother and, in the past, has refused requests for a change to interim orders for a better balanced contact between the child, her mother, and the maternal side of the family whom the father had consistently refused the child access to.
It was only because the mother commenced proceedings for final orders that the father has had to comply with more reasonable contact with the mother and her family.
Can anybody help with their interpretations or family law thoughts on the matter?
Regards
There has never been harm to the child. Previous access visits (since 2006) have gone extremely well. The mother is not a flight risk. It is the child who has requested that a night alone be spent with mother and child.
An argument could be made that if orders are being complied with (i.e that mother and daughter are residing with the grandparents for each visit) Then there is no need to seek the court's permission in what is essentially no deviation from orders.
The mother has reports which are very favourable - these reports are from health care professionals as well as family members.
The father is extremely hostile to the mother and, in the past, has refused requests for a change to interim orders for a better balanced contact between the child, her mother, and the maternal side of the family whom the father had consistently refused the child access to.
It was only because the mother commenced proceedings for final orders that the father has had to comply with more reasonable contact with the mother and her family.
Can anybody help with their interpretations or family law thoughts on the matter?
Regards