B and Anor v Director-General, Department of Human Services and Ors [2010] NSWDC 276

New South Wales District Court

CITATION: B and Anor v Director-General, Department of Human Services and Ors [2010] NSWDC 276

HEARING DATE(S): 12/10/2010-15/10/2010, 20/10/2010-21/10/2010, 25/11/2010

JUDGMENT DATE: 10 December 2010

JURISDICTION: Civil

JUDGMENT OF: Murrell SC DCJ

DECISION: See para [37]-[39] of judgment

LEGISLATION CITED: Children and Young Persons (Care and Protection) Act 1998

Department of Community Services v Grant and T, S and F Reid (2010) CLN 8 CASES CITED: A v Director General Department of Human Services (District Court of NSW, 2 July 2010, unreported) Re Liam (2005) NSWSC 75

N (First Appellant) PARTIES: A (Second Appellant) Director-General, Department of Human Services (First Defendant)

FILE NUMBER(S): 2010/00099649

COUNSEL: Mr T. Allen for the Director-General

SOLICITORS: Mr Grant as Independent Solicitor for the Child

Background to the Appeal 1 T's father appeals against findings and orders that were made by the Children's Court on 17 December 2009. Under those orders, T's maternal grandmother has parental responsibility for T, her paternal grandmother has limited contact, and her father has limited supervised contact. The father seeks to increase the frequency and duration of his contact with T, with a view to ultimate restoration (T365.15-20, T367.8-15).

2 T is 4 years old. Until early 2009, she lived with her mother in a granny flat at the rear of premises occupied by her maternal grandmother and the maternal grandmother's de facto partner. The maternal grandmother played a central role in T's care. T had contact with her father. However, in December 2008, he was imprisoned until December 2009.