The government plans to make changes to the Children Act 1989 to strengthen childrens legal rights to maintain proper relationships with both parents after separation.   

In its formal response to the Family Justice Review by David Norgrove which was published in November 2011, the government has pledged to make changes to the law reinforcing childrens rights to meaningful contact with parents following separation or family breakdown.  

The law is set out in the Children Act 1989; at the heart of which is the Welfare Principle. When considering cases relating to arrangements for children following separation of their parents, the childs welfare is the Courts paramount consideration and in reaching such decisions it has regard to the welfare checklist; a list of factors such as the wishes and feelings of the child concerned, the effect of any change of circumstances upon him or her, and any harm which the child has suffered or is at risk of suffering.

The Children Act 1989 does not make any presumption that the mother and father should share care of the child. Neither does it presume that the child should live with the mother. Every case must be considered on its own unique facts.  

However, many parents, particularly fathers have criticised the operation of the legal system which they say often leads to unfair results and deprives them of a proper and meaningful relationship with their children. Criticisms levelled at the Courts have been that they too often grant orders for Residence of a child with the mother or that they do not enforce strongly enough the rights of the non-resident parent, often the father, to see the child.  

In the Family Justice Review commissioned by the government, David Norgrove firmly opposed any changes to the law which would create a presumption of shared parenting. Having carefully considered the operation of other legal systems, evidence from Australia suggested that this was impractical, leading to longer delays in resolving disputes and poor outcomes for the children. 

Now, in a rejection of those conclusions of the Family Justice Review, the government pledges to examine potential changes to the Children Act 1989 to embed the rights of children to maintain relationships with both parents. It accepts that the legal system in Australia has its flaws and will have to draft any changes carefully to ensure that these do not arise. It will examine ways to introduce rules amending legislation to ensure no parents are excluded unless they pose a safety or welfare risk. Ministers have signalled that the reforms will stop short of equal contact, which was demanded by some fathers groups. 

It will be very interesting to see how the changes are introduced into the law and what impact they will have on separating families in the future.