Baas & Koeman [2025] FedCFamC1F 538 (12 August 2025)

(a) Contact the Contact Centre within seven (7) days of this Order to arrange an appointment for assessment for suitability for supervised contact;

(b) Attend the assessment;

(c) Attend any appointment made by the Contact Centre for supervised contact; and

(d) Comply with all reasonable rules, directions, or requests of the Contact Centre.

1. The father shall pay the fees invoiced by the Contact Centre for the provision of its service.
2. The commencement of the father's time with the children as provided in paragraph 2 of this Order is conditional upon him providing a negative test result for the presence of alcohol and/or drugs as identified in this Order and for this purpose the father shall forthwith make an appointment and attend for hair follicle collection at The Drug Detection Agency ("TDDA") nearest to his residence or other drug detection service nominated by the ICL for hair drug and alcohol testing, upon the following conditions:

(a) Collection is to be conducted by a qualified and certified collector;

(b) Chain-of-Custody procedure is to be applied to the sample;

(c) Testing is to be conducted at an approved laboratory, accredited to conduct hair drug testing to the recognised International Standard ISO/IEC 17025:2005 by the relevant national accreditation body for that laboratory;

(d) The hair drug test may screen for drugs including amphetamine-type substances and metabolites, cannabis and metabolites, cocaine and metabolites, opioids and metabolites; and

(e) TDDA is required to utilise the testing services of an appropriate laboratory accredited to conduct hair drug and alcohol testing to the recognised International Standard ISO/IEC 17025:2005 by the relevant National Accreditation body;

(f) TDDA's selection is to be based on the type of test required, the specific drug or drugs to be tested, the laboratory's compliance level with international Society of Hair Testing (SoHT) guidelines, cost, and time required for results to be made available;

(g) Either head or body hair may be collected for testing; and

(h) To give effect to this Order:

(i) the father shall maintain his head hair at a length of not less than three (3) centimetres;

(ii) neither head hair nor body hair is to be cut, bleached or dyed between the date of this order and the time of collection of hair;

(iii) within seven (7) days, the father is required to make an appointment with TDDA by telephoning 1300 378 483 for the purpose of providing a hair sample for hair drug testing;

(iv) the father shall provide TDDA with a copy of this Order;

(v) the father shall attend at a TDDA Clinic or nominee and submit to the supervised collection of a hair sample from the father at the earliest available appointment time for hair follicle drug and alcohol testing;

(vi) the father is to provide the collector with:

1. photographic identification to be recorded before each hair collection;
2. a copy of this Order which hereby authorises TDDA or other drug testing service nominated by the ICL to forthwith provide the results of each test to all parties and their legal representatives, including the ICL;

(vii) the cost of the hair drug and alcohol test is to be met by the father.

1. The father shall forthwith comply with any written request by the ICL that he submit to further random hair drug and alcohol testing and for this purpose the notice may be sent to the father care of the email address [redacted] and shall be deemed to have been received by the father on the date and time it is sent via email to that address.
2. The father is hereby restrained from:

(a) Attempting to locate the mother and/or the children;

(b) Contacting the mother and/or children, other than as permitted under the Apprehended Domestic Violence Order granted on 6 August 2025;

(c) Approaching the mother and/or the children, or going within 100 metres of any place they reside or attend for other regular purposes, such as daycare; and

(d) Approaching any place of work of the mother.

1. The father shall forthwith enrol in and complete a Men's Behavioural Change Program targeting his history of violence.
2. The father shall forthwith make an appointment with a psychiatrist for assessment and for this purpose shall provide the psychiatrist with a copy of this Order and the Reasons for Judgment dated 12 August 2025.
3. The father shall comply with any reasonable recommendations for treatment and therapy made by the psychiatrist.
4. The mother shall be at liberty to travel with the children to Germany for a temporary period subject to complying with the following conditions prior to her departure:

(a) Make and attend an appointment at the Contact Centre as required by paragraph 2(a) and (b) of this Order so that upon her return to Australia with the children there is no unnecessary delay in the father being able to spend time with the children pursuant to paragraph 2 of this Order;

(b) Deposit a security bond with her legal representatives in the sum of $40,000 to be released to the father in the event that the mother does not return to Australia with the children as required by this Order, but only upon production of satisfactory evidence that the funds or part thereof is required by him to secure the children's return to Australia pursuant to this Order or an order made pursuant to proceedings brought pursuant to the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction;

(c) Provide evidence to the father and the ICL that she has purchased return tickets for herself and the children to return to Australia no later than 6 November 2025.

1. In the event the mother travels to Germany pursuant to paragraph 10 of this Order, the mother shall facilitate the children's attendance at the Contact Centre for them to spend supervised time with the father on the first available date after 48 hours of her return to Australia with the children.
2. The mother is permitted to obtain Australian travel documents (as that term is defined in s 6 of the Australian Passports Act 2005 (Cth) ("the Australian Passports Act")) for each of the children without the consent of the father pursuant to s 11 of the Australian Passports Act and at her sole expense.
3. The children's passports are to be held by the mother.
4. The mother shall attend an appointment with the children with the Family Consultant appointed pursuant to paragraph 25 of this Order at the Lismore Registry at Westlawn Building, Level 2, 29-31 Molesworth Street, Lismore or at such other place as advised in writing at 9.30 am on Thursday, 20 November 2025 or at such other time as advised in writing.
5. The father shall attend an appointment with the Family Consultant appointed pursuant to paragraph 25 of this Order at the Lismore Registry at Westlawn Building, Level 2, 29-31 Molesworth Street, Lismore or at such other place as advised in writing at 2.00 pm on Thursday, 20 November 2025 or such other time as advised in writing and shall not attend at or in the vicinity of the appointment venue at a time other than as provided in this order or as advised in writing.
6. Any Application or Response seeking interim orders is otherwise dismissed.

1. The trial of this matter be listed before the Honourable Justice Jarrett sitting in Lismore at 10.00 am on 12 January 2026 for a period of 3 days.

1. The mother pay the setting down and hearing fee by 4.00 pm on 22 December 2025 unless a fee exemption application has been approved beforehand.

1. The mother file and serve any amended Initiating Application and one affidavit of evidence in chief of herself and of any witness upon which she intends to rely and an updated financial statement by no later than 4.00 pm on 15 December 2025.
2. The father file and serve any amended Response and one affidavit of evidence in chief of himself and of any witness upon which he intends to rely and a financial statement by no later than 4.00 pm on 22 December 2025.
3. The ICL file and serve any material upon which she intends to rely by no later than 4.00 pm on 29 December 2025.
4. Any affidavit by the applicant strictly in reply be filed and served no later than 4.00 pm on 5 January 2026.
5. In the event that a party (including the ICL) refers to a document within the body of an affidavit of evidence in chief, any such document is not to be annexed to the said affidavit, unless it is a report by a single expert or treating practitioner, (to be received as an exhibit at the trial) but is to be included in an indexed and paginated folder (including a reference to the paragraph number within any affidavit where the document is mentioned) and provided to the other party (including the ICL) at the time of service of the affidavit AND a copy of the folder should be available to be tendered, if required, by forwarding an electronic copy of the bundle, which is to be paginated to reflect the electronic page numbering, to [redacted]@fcfcoa.gov.au prior to the commencement of trial.
6. Each party including the ICL file and serve a case summary document no later than 4.00 pm on 7 January 2026, list of applications or responses and affidavits to be relied upon at trial; list of any witnesses proposed to be called at trial pursuant to subpoena; and a summary of argument with any authorities relied upon.

1. Pursuant to s 62G of the Family Law Act 1975 (Cth) ("the Act"), a Family Consultant nominated by the Senior Family Consultant, Brisbane Registry is directed to prepare a Family Report for a trial listed in the Lismore Registry commencing on 12 January 2026 in relation to the following children:

(a) X born on [redacted] 2021; and

(b) Y born on [redacted] 2023.

1. In the preparation of the report, the Family Consultant is requested to consider and/or have regard to the following matters:

(a) What arrangements would promote the safety (including safety from being subjected to, or exposed to, family violence, abuse, neglect, or other harm) of:

(i) the children; and

(ii) each person who has care of the children (whether or not a person has parental responsibility for the children).

(b) The developmental, psychological, emotional and cultural needs of the children;

(c) The capacity of each person who has or is proposed to have parental responsibility for the children to provide for the children's developmental, psychological, emotional and cultural needs;

(d) The benefit to the children of being able to have a relationship with the children's parents, and other people who are significant to the children, where it is safe to do so; and

(e) Anything else that is relevant to the particular circumstances of the children.

1. The Family Consultant is requested to make recommendations on what orders may best meet the interests of the children noting that it is not the role of the Family Consultant to make any findings of fact.
2. Any facts relied upon by the Family Consultant for any opinions expressed in the report should be identified within the body of the report.
3. The parents shall attend all appointments fixed by the Family Consultant and the mother shall ensure that the children attend all appointments as required. If a parent fails to attend or fails to ensure that the children attend, that parent may be liable for any costs thrown away by the non-attendance.
4. The Family Consultant has leave to inspect all documents listed in the letter of instruction provided to them by the ICL.

1. The ICL is requested to forthwith notify the Family Consultant in writing of the trial dates and confirm the availability of the Family Consultant to give evidence on those dates, if required.

1. Pursuant to r 6.26 of the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Family Law) Rules 2021 (Cth) ("the Rules") leave is granted to the ICL to issue a subpoena to produce documents to the following persons/entities:

(a) New South Wales Police Service; and

(b) New South Wales Department of Communities and Justice.

1. Pursuant to r 6.26 of the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Family Law) Rules 2021 (Cth) ("the Rules") leave is granted to the mother to issue a subpoena to produce documents to the following persons/entities:

1. Upon leave being granted to inspect documents produced to this Honourable Court pursuant to subpoena or pursuant to any previous Order, each party i.e. including their legal representatives, arrange a time with the Registry to inspect all such documents (including any recordings) as soon as reasonably practicable.
2. After inspection of documents produced to this Honourable Court pursuant to subpoena, the mother and father shall each provide to the ICL a detailed list of any documents (sufficient to enable the ICL to identify the document) requested by them to be included in a bundle of documents to be tendered at trial by consent no later than 4.00 pm on 1 December 2025. The ICL is requested to then provide a proposed index of the documents to be included in the tender bundle to the other parties by no later than 4.00 pm on 15 December 2025 and at trial, have available to tender, the bundle indexed and paginated, with the page numbering to reflect the electronic page numbering, by emailing a copy of the electronic bundle prior to the commencement of trial to [redacted]@fcfcoa.gov.au.
3. Leave is granted to only the ICL to photocopy the documents produced by subpoena from New South Wales Police Service (this does not include any recorded interviews with children) and the New South Wales Department of Communities and Justice (subject to any objection being first determined) AND leave is granted to the ICL to provide a copy of any proposed tender bundle to Counsel or solicitor advocate appearing for the mother and father (if any) with any costs associated therewith to be paid by the party receiving the tender bundle and on the condition that the copy of the tender bundle provided is destroyed at the conclusion of the proceedings.

1. Pursuant to Chapter 6 of the Rules each party comply with their ongoing duty to give full and frank disclosure of all information and documents (including recordings) relevant to an issue in the case, in a timely manner.
2. Pursuant to r 6.02 of the Rules each party file and serve a written notice:

(a) Stating that the party:

(i) Has read Parts 6.1 and 6.2 of the Rules; and

(ii) Is aware of the party's duty to the Court and each other party (including the ICL) to give full and frank disclosure of all information relevant to the issues in the case, in a timely manner;

(b) Undertaking to the Court that, to the best of the party's knowledge and ability, the party has complied with, and will continue to comply with, the duty of disclosure; and

(c) Acknowledging that a breach of the undertaking may be contempt of Court.

(d) And the undertaking as to disclosure for each party should be filed prior to the commencement of trial and a sealed copy served upon each other party.

1. By no later than 4.00 pm on 9 January 2026 the lawyer for each party (including the Independent Children's Lawyer) shall give the other parties a written notice of:

(a) The party's actual costs, both paid and owing, up to and including the trial;

(b) Any expenses paid or payable to an expert witness or, if those expenses are not known, an estimate of the expenses.

1. By no later than 4.00 pm on 9 January 2026 the lawyer for each party (including the ICL) file and serve a copy upon the other parties.

1. The following issues have been identified as issues for trial:

(1) What final parenting order, if any, can be made to promote the safety of the children and the mother from the risks of harm posed by the father?

(2) Is the mother able to facilitate a relationship between the father and the children?

(3) What are the advantages and disadvantages of the children relocating with the mother to Germany?

(4) If the children are not spending time with the father, would it be beneficial for them to have some form of communication with him?

1. The witnesses in each party's case are as follows:

(1) In the mother's case it will be herself and her mother, Ms J;

(2) In the father's case it will be himself; and

(3) The ICL will arrange for the Family Report writer to be available at the trial, if required.

1. The mother consented to the father spending supervised time with the children prior to the trial.

1. The father consented to the provisions of the proposed Minute of Order (as amended during the hearing) submitted by the ICL including that he pay the costs of supervision and that the commencement of supervised time with the children be conditional upon him providing a negative test result for illicit drugs and alcohol.
2. The Court Children's Service at the Lismore Registry is unable to provide childcare during Family Report interviews. The mother will need to have a support person available to care for the children while she completes her interview at 9.30 am on 20 November 2025.
3. All parties agreed that the trial would finish in three days.

1. There is no Court by the name "Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia". This Court was formerly known as the Family Court of Australia and is now known as the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Division 1).
2. The design of the seal affixed to this Order issued by the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Division 1) was determined by the Attorney-General pursuant to the undated Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Seal) Determination 2021 signed by the Attorney-General.

Note: The form of the order is subject to the entry in the Court's records.

Note: This copy of the Court's Reasons for judgment may be subject to review to remedy minor typographical or grammatical errors (r 10.14(b) Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Family Law) Rules 2021 (Cth)), or to record a variation to the order pursuant to r 10.13 Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Family Law) Rules 2021 (Cth).

Part XIVB of the Family Law Act 1975 (Cth) makes it an offence, except in very limited circumstances, to publish an account of proceedings that identify persons, associated persons, or witnesses involved in family law proceedings.

IT IS NOTED that publication of this judgment by this Court under a pseudonym has been approved pursuant to subsection 114Q(2) of the Family Law Act 1975 (Cth). In addition to the use of pseudonyms for the parties, other changes have been made to the published judgment to protect the identity of a party or a witness. Such changes (other than when a letter is used instead of a name or an address) are apparent on the face of the judgment by the use of square brackets.

1. Ms Baas ("the mother") and Mr Koeman ("the father") have two very young children together. X was born on [redacted] 2021 and Y was born on [redacted] 2023. The children currently live with the mother in an undisclosed address in City E. The children have not had any contact with the father, since 2 January 2025, when he was arrested at the family home after assaulting the mother and breaching an Apprehended Domestic Violence Order ("ADVO").
2. According to the father's solicitor, the father was remanded in custody for 30 days before being released on bail with conditions prohibiting him from living in or entering City E other than to attend court. The father has lived in City F, New South Wales since he was released from custody. City F is an eight-and-a-half-hour drive from City E. The father contends he will be unable to spend any time with the children, even if permitted, unless he is able to move back to City E.
3. Further, it is common ground that on 16 June 2025, the father was convicted after a "contested hearing" of assaulting the mother and breaching an ADVO. According to the father's solicitor, the father was sentenced on 6 August 2025 to a community corrections order requiring him to undertake 70 hours of community service. Under the terms of his community service, the father is required to report to the Community Corrections Office in City F. The father is hopeful of transferring his community service requirements to the City E office but if he cannot do so it is conceded that he will be unable to spend time with the children.
4. At the commencement of the hearing, the parties were informed that the matter would be listed for a final hearing in Lismore in the week commencing 12 January 2026, and that Family Report interviews would be conducted in Lismore on 20 November 2025.
5. No doubt informed by that information, and notwithstanding the relief sought by the mother in the Application in a Proceeding filed 20 February 2025, and the relief sought by the father in the Response filed on 10 July 2025, there were only two significant issues for my determination on an interim basis. Namely, whether the mother should be at liberty to travel to Germany with the children until the Family Report interviews on 20 November 2025 and what arrangements would promote the safety of the mother and the children.
6. The mother's application on a final basis is to relocate with the children to Germany permanently. On a final basis, the father seeks to spend time with the children each alternate weekend and during school holidays and does not oppose the mother travelling to Germany with the children once per year for a period of four weeks.
7. The father opposes the mother's interim application to travel to Germany until the Family Report interviews. The Independent Children's Lawyer ("the ICL") does not oppose the mother travelling to Germany until the Family Report interviews if she provides a security bond of $40,000. The ICL provided a draft Minute of Order which was substantially amended during submissions. The father adopted the draft Minute of Order as amended. The draft will be retained with the Court papers.
8. The mother conceded shortly after the commencement of the hearing, that if she is in Australia, the father should spend supervised time with the children prior to the trial. The mother's concession was made notwithstanding the father's admitted history of violence to her and to third parties, the finding by Department of Communities and Justice ("Child Safety") of substantiated sexual harm by the father against another child of his in 2013, and the mother's evidence that she lives in fear of the father returning to City E. No explanation was provided for her capitulation.
9. All parties were legally represented and attended the interim hearing via video link.
10. The mother did not seek leave to rely upon two additional affidavits by her filed on 25 March 2025 and 16 May 2025 and did not seek leave to tender any recordings.
11. To date the mother has paid $43,070.50 in legal expenses, with further costs estimated to be $50,000.
12. Notwithstanding r 12.06 of the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Family Law) Rules 2021 (Cth) ("the Rules"), the father has not filed a costs disclosure notice. I do not know if he is privately funding the proceedings or if he is legally aided. He has not filed a financial statement but as earlier noted consented to paying the costs associated with supervision as recommended in the ICL's draft Minute of Order.

1. The parents commenced cohabitation on 8 October 2010 and separated in early January 2025, (according to the mother's Initiating Application filed 22 January 2025) although the father contends separation occurred in September 2024, and that they continued to live under the same roof until January 2025. In the child impact report (Exhibit 1) the mother is reported to have said that separation under the same roof occurred in May 2023 and that the father refused to move out of the home. Nothing turns on the inconsistency for the purposes of this hearing.
2. The mother was born in Germany on [redacted] 1989 and is 35 years of age. She moved to Australia some time in 2009 and soon after commenced a relationship with the father.
3. The father was born on [redacted] 1977 and is 48 years of age. The father contends that he is a qualified chef and "worked in the industry for 20 years". It seems he has not been employed for some time, although the child impact report records that at the date of interview on 12 May 2025, the father was working casually as a delivery driver up to five days a week. The father contends that he received a "pay out" of $300,000 as a result of a car accident. It is unclear when the car accident or payment occurred.
4. The mother received 18 weeks parental leave after X was born and she returned to employment thereafter. The mother contends that she did so because the father refused to obtain employment. After Y was born the mother again returned to employment although it is unclear when. The mother contends that she did so because "finances became so limited and the father still did not have a stable income". It is common ground that the father was at home alone with X after the mother resumed employment and with both children after the mother returned to employment after Y was born. The mother is critical of the standard of the father's care of the children during these periods. The mother contends that the father was a daily user of cannabis and that he consumed alcohol to excess often starting in the morning. There is no suggestion that any risk to the children came to the attention of Child Safety or anyone else. The father contends he had a close and loving relationship with the children prior to his arrest in January 2025.
5. In either September 2024 (according to the mother) or December 2024 (according to the father), the mother left the children with the father for seven days (according to the mother) or about 10 days (according to the father) while she travelled to Germany to see her dying grandmother. The mother concedes that she left the children with the father during her absence.
6. The mother is not currently employed. The mother contends that she cannot afford childcare and that "there are no Child Care spaces immediately available that [she] can afford so [she] cannot work". At the time the mother was interviewed for the child impact report on 12 May 2025, the mother was unemployed, but the children attended daycare two days per week. The mother does not state when the children ceased to attend daycare or why she was unable to work on those two days.
7. The mother's parents were in Australia for an undisclosed period earlier this year. They were present in Australia at the time the mother's mother swore an affidavit on 18 February 2025 and deposed that she and her husband would be returning to Germany on or around 3 March 2025. It is unclear when the maternal grandmother returned to Australia, but the mother deposes to her mother being in Australia in her affidavit filed 30 July 2025 and that she will leave Australia to return to Germany on 15 August 2025.
8. At some point after January 2025, the mother sold the home in which she and the father lived during their relationship for $660,000. She does not disclose the date of sale. The mother contends that from the proceeds of sale she repaid a loan to her parents of $380,000 but she has not accounted for the balance. The mother asserts that she has no funds from which to pay a security bond. The mother's financial statement filed on 11 August 2025, indicates that the mother has an income of $834.18 per week from government benefits and that she pays rent of $550.
9. The father does not dispute any of the allegations of violence made against him by the mother towards her including the following:

(a) Sometime in 2012 to 2013, the father attempted to assault her in a carpark but people intervened to prevent him from doing so;

(b) Sometime in 2012 to 2014:

(i) The father punched a hole in the wall and threatened the mother that if she ever left him he would hunt her down and "gas [her]";

(ii) Grabbed a knife and said he would cut their dog's throat and hit the mother and she ended up on the floor;

(c) Using repeated derogatory taunts such as "dirty kraut", "whore", "slut", "jew killer" and "stupid woman";

(d) In 2015, the father "belittled" the mother in front of two friends, Mr G and Ms H;

(e) In May 2014, when she attempted to leave him, the father "strangled [her] very hard" and she had difficulty drinking water for many months;

(f) In 2016, the father pushed her off a chair;

(g) In early 2018, the father attacked her by throwing her onto a bed but stopped after she screamed;

(h) On an undisclosed date, (but prior to early 2018) the father was convicted of offences relating to a road rage incident where he produced a knife and threatened a person and was chased by police and subsequently sentenced to 18 months home detention;

(i) In March 2018, the father threatened the mother with a knife and stabbed their mattress and her mobile phone;

(j) In May 2023, while the mother was heavily pregnant, the father was intoxicated and while the mother was trying to escape the father said - "You're lucky your [sic] pregnant, otherwise I'd punch your head in". The child, X was present and crying. The father was arrested and an ADVO was issued for the protection of the mother;

(k) On unspecified dates, the father repeatedly said that the ADVO was "just a piece of paper";

(l) In January 2025, after the mother said to the father that he needed to move out of the home, the father threatened that if ever the mother dated anyone else he would stalk them and run them down and try to hurt her;

(m) On 3 January 2025, the father attempted to strangle her, tried to pull her head down to her chest, and dragged her such that she ended up in the kitchen and while the mother was screaming the child, Y, woke up screaming.

1. As previously referred to, the incident on 3 January 2025 resulted in the father's arrest and he was remanded in custody. The father provides no evidence about this incident. As noted, he does not dispute the mother's allegations. In relation to the history of family violence the father deposes as follows:
   1. I understand that both the mother and I have done things and said things which we regret and I accept responsibility for the role that I played however were are both responsible. Sometimes in happened in the presence of the children on both our parts and I regret that.
2. The father submits that his expression of regret for his "involvement" in the "toxic relationship" demonstrates his "insight".
3. The mother contends that she lives in fear of the father and needs the support, both emotional and financial, of her family in Germany. It is for this reason that she seeks, even for a short time, to travel to Germany to spend time with family before the Family Report interviews in November 2025.
4. In the child impact report, the mother is recorded as stating that the father threatened to kill Y in 2024 when Y was crying and that he had threatened to kill her and the children. Those very serious allegations are not repeated in the mother's sworn evidence.
5. The mother contends that the father has been diagnosed with bipolar disorder although no particulars are provided. The father does not deny this allegation. The father told the child impact report writer that he has been diagnosed with anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder and obsessive compulsive disorder and that he is prescribed Zoloft. There is no evidence about his history of mental illness despite the father informing the child impact report writer that he engages in therapeutic counselling on a fortnightly basis.
6. The father alleges that the mother was violent to him during the relationship including regularly spitting at him in the presence of the children, making repeated derogatory taunts such as "you're a fucking useless prick", "go and fucking hang yourself", and "[y]ou're useless and can't look after the kids". The father also contends that the mother threatened him with a knife on numerous occasions and said to him - "I wouldn't fall asleep if I were you, you don't [know] what will happen". The mother does not dispute these allegations despite filing an affidavit in reply.
7. In 2013, Child Safety substantiated sexual harm by the father against his daughter, Ms K. Ms K is now an adult. Ms K spent time with the father during school holidays once or twice a year. Child Safety established a safety plan for Ms K in which her mother agreed that Ms K would not visit the father until she was over 16. There are no particulars of the sexual harm. The father makes no mention of it in his affidavit.
8. In her affidavit filed 30 July 2025, the mother deposed that she was "shocked" when her solicitor informed her about the father's alleged sexual offending against Ms K, representing that she only became aware of this after the recent production of material by Child Safety to the Court. However, in her affidavit filed 20 February 2025, the mother deposed to the following:
   1. I was present when three police officers served some papers on [the father] alleging that he had been sexually touching his daughter from a former relationship when the child was aged 6 to 9 years. The police searched the house on this occasion. He was never sentenced for this alleged offence. However, [the father] has not seen his daughter since, with all contact ceasing by 2013-2014.

1. As the Full Court observed in Banks & Banks[1] at 80,116:
   1. ... By their nature, interim parenting proceedings should be confined to those issues which, in the best interests of the child, require determination prior to a proper determination at a trial. ...
   2. ... It is also important to stress here that the requirement to "consider" each factor does not mean each must be discussed, especially where the evidence leads inexorably to a particular conclusion.
   3. When it is obvious that the findings made as to some of the s 60CC factors will be determinative of the child's best interests on an interim basis, it is a sterile and unnecessary exercise to address other factors. ...

1. In deciding whether to make a particular parenting order, including one involving overseas travel, the Court must regard the best interests of the child as the paramount consideration (s 60CA of the Family Law Act 1975 (Cth) ("the Act")). The factors informing that determination are set out in s 60CC of the Act and s 60CG of the Act imposes mandatory considerations aimed at protecting a person from an unacceptable risk of family violence. I am also mindful of the objects of Part VII of the Act to give effect to the 1989 United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child.

1. If the mother travels to Germany before the trial, there are obvious risks that she will not return to Australia with the children for the Family Report interviews notwithstanding her stated commitment to do so.
2. Although the mother has lived in Australia for 16 years, she is a German citizen with no current ties to Australia. The mother has sold her home and furniture and has no current lease on accommodation. She contends she has no family or close friendships in Australia and that she is fearful of the father finding her. The mother contends that she is currently living in holiday accommodation with her mother and will have nowhere to live after 29 August 2025. Notwithstanding this evidence, her financial statement discloses that she is paying rent of $550 per week. The mother is not currently employed.
3. It is not in contention that the mother has endured family violence at the hands of the father, and it is unsurprising that she wishes to travel to her country of origin to obtain emotional support from her family leading up to the trial. As her mother is returning to Germany on 15 August 2025, the mother contends that she will be left with no support.
4. The mother's immediate financial plight seems curious given her parents generous loan of $380,000 which she has recently repaid. The mother does not state that she has asked her parents for financial assistance, and it has been refused, or that her parents no longer have the capacity to provide her with support. The mother simply asserts that she is impecunious. The mother does not state how she intends to raise the funds for herself and children to travel to Germany and return to Australia for the Family Report interviews. The mother opposes the imposition of any security bond submitting only that she does not have the funds.
5. Germany is a member of the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction ("the Hague Convention") as are the other countries within the European Union.
6. The mother has capitulated in her opposition to the father spending time with the children prior to the trial and consents to that time occurring under supervision as recommended by the ICL and accepted by the father but presses her application to be able to travel to Germany until the Family Report interviews in late November 2025.
7. There are many matters to balance in the exercise of my discretion. Such matters include the following:

(a) The father's admitted history of family violence to which the mother has been subjected;

(b) The father's undisputed history of violence to third parties including breaching an ADVO against a former partner in 2004 and threatening a stranger in 2018 in a 'road rage' incident when the father produced a knife and resisted arrest (the father provides no evidence about this incident conceding only that he was convicted of "affray");

(c) The father's admitted history of drug and alcohol abuse;

(d) The substantiation by Child Safety of sexual harm by the father against another child of his (now an adult) in 2013, which the father does not dispute;

(e) The undisputed history of the mother perpetrating family violence against the father;

(f) The admitted exposure of the children to family violence;

(g) The father's admitted history of mental illness;

(h) The admitted history of the father caring for the children during the relationship while the mother was employed;

(i) The admitted history of the father caring for the children while the mother travelled to Germany for up to 10 days last year;

(j) The mother's stated fear of the father, yet her capitulation and consent to the father spending supervised time with the children prior to trial without explanation;

(k) The benefits to the mother and indirectly the children of the mother obtaining emotional support from her family in Germany in the lead up to the trial;

(l) The recommendation of the ICL that the father spend supervised time with the children pending trial;

(m) The risk that the mother will not return to Australia as promised which will lead to possible proceedings under to the Hague Convention for the children's return to Australia;

(n) The father's agreement in his final proposed order for the mother to travel to Germany with the children for up to four weeks each year; and

(o) The recommendation by the ICL that the mother be at liberty to travel to Germany until the Family Report interviews on condition that she provides a security bond of $40,000.

1. In considering what parenting order to make, I must consider what arrangements would promote the safety of the children and the mother (as the children's primary carer) in addition to the matters in s 60CC of the Act so far as relevant and the obligation created by s 60CG. It seems to me that although the father poses a significant risk of harm to the mother and the children, I should place some weight on the mother's consent to the children spending time with the father under supervision pending the trial, the father's history of caring for the children in the mother's absence while at work and overseas, and the absence of any Child Safety involvement since the birth of X and Y. Further, I note the recommendation by the ICL that the father spend supervised time with the children pending trial notwithstanding the reservations expressed by the child impact report writer.
2. In my view, the risk posed by the father can be ameliorated by supervision and the imposition of further conditions that will need to be met by the father before he commences spending supervised time with the children and additional conditions if that time is to continue.
3. The father will be required to undergo immediate hair follicle drug and alcohol testing and produce a negative test result prior to commencing supervised time with the children and will be required to submit to random drug tests at the request of the ICL from time to time prior to trial. The father will be required to pay for the costs of the drug and alcohol tests.
4. The father will also be required to forthwith enrol in and complete a Men's Behavioural Change Program targeting his history of violence. The child impact report writer opined that it would be helpful to gain an understanding of the father's mental health. I agree. Accordingly, the father will be required to forthwith consult a psychiatrist for a psychiatric assessment. The father will be required to provide a copy of these reasons to the psychiatrist. The father will be required to comply with any reasonable treatment and therapy recommended by the psychiatrist.
5. I intend to enjoin the father from seeking to locate the mother and/or children, from approaching them or attending any place they may be expected to be. The father did not oppose such injunctions.
6. The mother has an understandable desire to obtain emotional support from her family in Germany pending the trial. The child impact report writer opined that it was important that the children's bond with their mother not be interfered with or compromised. I agree. In my view, the absence of emotional support may put that bond at risk. However, I must balance against that, the risk of the mother not returning despite her promise to do so.
7. I consider that the ICL's recommendation for the mother pay a security bond of $40,000 as a condition of her travel, to be reasonable. If the mother does not return as ordered, the funds can be released to the father to assist him to meet legal and necessary travel costs to Germany if he pursues the recovery of the children pursuant to the Hague Convention. The mother will be required return to Australia with the children prior to 20 November 2025 so that the father has an opportunity to spend supervised time with the children prior to the Family Report interviews.
8. I do not propose to include any provision for telephone or video call communication between the father and the children given their ages. It would be of little if any benefit to the children.

I certify that the preceding forty-six (46) numbered paragraphs are a true copy of the Reasons for Judgment of the Honourable Justice Carew.

[1] [2015] FamCAFC 36; (2015) FLC 93-637.