When will a Court Order Parents to have Equal Shared Parental Responsibility?
When courts are considering child issues, parenting arrangements and making a Parenting Order, the Family Law Act requires that a presumption of Equal Shared Parental Responsibility applies, unless you can successfully rebut the presumption.
You may be able to be successful in rebutting the presumption of Equal Shared Parental Responsibility if you can prove that there are reasonable grounds to believe that a parent, or a person who lives with a parent of a child, has engaged in:-
- family violence; or
- abuse of the child or another child who, at the time, was a member of the parent’s family (or that other person’s family).
To have the presumption of equal shared parental responsibility not apply, the presumption will need to be rebutted by evidence satisfying the court that it would not be in the best interests of the child for the child’s parents to have equal shared parental responsibility for the child.
If the court does not make an Order for equal shared parental responsibility then they may make an order for Sole Parental Responsibility.
More Information on Child’s Time with Parents & Parental Responsibility
We also have the following Fact Sheets which will provide you with more information on this topic:
- What is Shared Care or Equal Time and will it apply to us
- What is Substantial and Significant Time and when does it apply
- What is Parental Responsibility and What types of Parental Responsibility Orders do Courts make
- What is Equal Shared Parental Responsibility
- When does Equal Shared Parental Responsibility apply
- What does Sole Parental Responsibility mean
- When will Sole Parental Responsibility be Ordered
- Who makes long term, short term and day to day decisions for the Child
- What are the major Long Term Issues that must be made by parents with Shared Parental Responsibility
- What are Grandparents Rights to see their Grandchildren
- Mediation Requirements before Court Proceedings
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All Topics in the Child Issues Section
- Types of Parental Responsibility Orders
- Child’s Time with Parents: Shared Care or not
- Grandparents: Rights to see Grandchildren
- Documenting a Parenting Agreement
- Best Interests of the Children
- Relocation of a Parent with a Child
- Change of a Child’s Surname
- Child Passports & Overseas Travel after Separation or Divorce
- How to change a Final Parenting Order previously made by the Court
- International Child Abduction
