Type:	Journal Article
Title:	The friendly parent provisions in Australian?family law: how friendly will you need?to?be
Other Titles:	Australian journal of family law
Authors:	De Simone, Tracey
Keywords:	Family law
Year:	2008
Publisher:	Butterworths
Citation:	22 (1), 2008
Notes:	In 2006, the Australian Government introduced a raft of changes into its family law legislation to ensure that children spend more time with both parents post-separation. Although the government did not go as far as to mandate equal time with each parent post-separation, it introduced changes that require courts to consider whether it is in the child's best interests to have equal time or 'substantial and significant time' with the non-residential parent. The changes augment the existing factors that the court takes into account when deciding which parenting order is in the child's best interests.Two sections included in the legislation can be described as 'friendly parent' provisions. They require the court to look positively on the parent who is most likely to facilitate a relationship between the child and the other parent. 'Friendly parent' provisions are used in some of the family law statutes of the United States but they have been heavily criticised. Why were these provisions included in the Australian regime and how will they affect the Australian family law environment? This article argues that these provisions could be very dangerous in cases where domestic violence is a feature of the case. In addition, it is questionable whether the protections offered in the legislation around domestic violence will overcome these concerns. [?200 Lexis Nexis All rights reserved. For further information, visit Australian Journal of Family Law.]
URI:	https://anrows.intersearch.com.au/anrowsjspui/handle/1/12300
ISSN:	0817-623X
Appears in Collections:	Journal Articles

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