Stepfamily Association

CASES coming before the Family Court will be decided on merit and not on a formula designed to benefit fathers, Chief Justice Diana Bryant said yesterday.

Chief Justice Bryant said data released for the first time last week shows that the number of shared parenting decisions have more than doubled, meaning that fathers are getting more access to their children.

However, Chief Justice Bryant said that was to be expected after changes to the Family Law Act introduced by the Howard government in 2006.

Under the changes, the court must apply the presumption that shared, equal parenting is in the best interests of children, and that a child has a right to a relationship with both parents.

Chief Justice Bryant said that did not mean children would be forced into contact with violent fathers, or that mothers would routinely lose contact with their children.