New Zealand Case Law: Decisions & Judgments | LexChat

New Zealand Case Law

Contact/supervised access

  • 9 May 2014

    JOYCE v O'BRIEN [2014] NZHC 964

    Citation
    [2014] NZHC 964
    Court
    High Court

    The High Court allowed the appeal in part: the Family Court's order entirely denying the father contact with his daughter for two years was disproportionate and not demonstrably in G's best interests; supervised contact mitigates the risk of alienation while preserving G's relationship with her father. The Court applied a general appeal standard (rehearing) and substituted a supervised-contact regime (fortnightly two-hour supervised contact at Barnardos for six months) with leave to apply for variation thereafter and imposed a s48(5)-style prohibition on denigratory communication about the ot…

  • 28 Jun 2012

    NM V AG HC AK CIV 2012-404-842

    Citation
    openlaw-84e04ceb_35ec_42f6_bd15_8fdc2ed235e2.pdf
    Court
    High Court

    The appeal is dismissed because the Family Court did not err in principle or exercise of discretion: the court-appointed psychologist's evidence and the record established that the father's conduct and failure to pursue counselling and appropriate supervised contact posed a material emotional risk to the child; the father effectively elected not to pursue the interim regime and therapy, and a final supervised-access order with conditions was necessary and proportionate to protect the child's welfare and provide finality.