Family law parenting orders, breaches and their impact on children

What drives non-compliance with family law parenting orders? This webinar launches the second and final report within Compliance with and enforcement of family law parenting orders. Conducted with the Australian Institute of Family Studies, this research examines how the parenting order enforcement regime is working in Australia. It does so by pulling together a range of perspectives, from the views of parents and carers, and legal professionals as well as judicial insights from court files. This research demonstrates that when parenting orders fail to take children’s views into account, or family violence makes them unsafe to comply with, these factors can be drivers of non-compliance.

While contravention orders are not particularly common in Australia – they make up about 8 per cent of applications for final orders in parenting matters each year – the families who make these applications have complex needs and complex litigation histories. In today’s panel we’ll look at whether the current system for responding to breaches of family law parenting orders contained in div 13A of pt VII of the Family Law Act 1975 (Cth) meets the needs of these families, with a particular focus on whether it meets the needs of children experiencing domestic and family violence.

This webinar features a panel discussion amongst the report’s researchers and family law practitioners. It will focus on the impact of breaches of parenting orders upon children, and explore how the findings might shape future reforms to achieve better outcomes for families with complex needs and long litigation histories.

This discussion is facilitated by Michele Robinson (Director Evidence to Action, ANROWS) with:

Dr Rae Kaspiew, Research Director, Systems and Services, Australian Institute of Family Studies
Dr Rachel Carson, Executive Manager Family Law, Family Violence and Elder Abuse, Australian Institute of Family Studies
Dr Heidi Saunders, Clinical Psychologist, Carinity Talera
Michelle Hayward, Managing Solicitor, Family Law Practice, Aboriginal Legal Service (NSW/ACT)
Gabrielle Craig, Assistant Principal Solicitor, Women’s Legal Service NSW

There will also be a live Q&A.

This webinar is designed for policymakers, practice designers, practitioners and researchers working in family law, domestic and family violence and child-focused organisations.

The webinar is open to anyone and free to attend. Live captioning will be available for the webinar.

A recording of the webinar will also be made available on the ANROWS website.

Enquiries: rachel.pow@anrows.org.au