Secretary, New South Wales Department of Family and Community Services v KZ [2019] NSWSC 474

Supreme Court New South Wales

Medium Neutral Citation: Secretary, New South Wales Department of Family and Community Services v KZ [2019] NSWSC 474 Hearing dates: 29 April 2019 Date of orders: 29 April 2019 Decision date: 29 April 2019 Jurisdiction: Equity - Adoptions List Before: Sackar J Decision: Adoption Orders made Catchwords: EQUITY – adoption – whether adoption proposed will promote the best interests of the child – whether dispensing with consent of maternal grandmother and birth parents is in the best interests of the child – whether the best interests of the child will be promoted by the making of an adoption order and preferable to any other action– whether the Paternal and Maternal Adoption Plans should be registered– whether the court should order the child's surname to be changed Legislation Cited: Adoption Act 2000 Cases Cited: Adoption of Taylor-Clay [2019] NSWSC 27 Category: Principal judgment Parties: The Secretary, New South Wales Department of Family and Community Services (Plaintiff) Birth Father (First Defendant) Maternal grandmother (Second Defendant) Representation: Counsel: C McGorey (Plaintiff)

Solicitors: NSW Crown Solicitors (Plaintiff) Dean Lawyers, Dean M Russo (Defendant) File Number(s): A142/2018

Judgment

The Proceedings 1. The Secretary for the Department of Family and Community Services (the Secretary) by summons filed 27 July 2018 seeks the making of the following Orders: 1. A declaration that birth father is the father of the child; 2. Including the father's name in the Register of Births, Deaths and Marriages as the child's father; 3. Dispensing with the consent of the birth parents; 4. Providing for the adoption of the child by the proposed adoptive parents; and 5. Approving the child's surname as "M" and given names RRS. 1. The Secretary and the proposed adoptive parents have agreed to two Adoption Plans, dated 27 July 2018.