RCOs (Recovery of Contact Orders)

Recovery of Contact Orders - protecting children from one parent excluding the other .

The proposal is surprisingly simple. It focuses on protecting children on the harm caused by Family Court litigation by protecting them from having one of their parents excluded by the other without first obtaining Family Court approval.

The proposal is based on the use of Contact Restoration Order that would be obtained from a Magistrates or District court in the same way as an AVO (Apprehended Violence Order or Intervention Order) – so that the child’s relationship with both its parents is not compromised until a Judge has the opportunity to assess the application of the parent that wants to deny the other parent from a relationship with their child.

Like AVOs RCOs would be enforceable immediately so that the child is protected from harm form the initial instant.

RCOs would provide each parent with 50% custody of their children (or less by agreement) on a week about basis (or otherwise by agreement).

Like AVOs, RCOs would be subject to prompt adjudication in Court – normally in a matter of days if opposed by the other parent.

RCOs would not be effective immediately is charges of abuse of serious neglect are filed with the Police.

Essentially this reverse the current process where children have one of their parents ejected from their lives unilaterally on the say so of the excluding parent, leaving the excluded parent with the only option of mounting a legal case in the Family Court by way of an application for shared parenting. The RCO mechanism would turn the tables so the parent wishing to exclude the other parent must first obtain a court order to do so based on evidence that the other parent presents an unacceptable risk to the child.

Third party weekly change over arrangements would ensure children don’t suffer the loss of one parent from their lives when one parent makes accusations of abuse of Family Violence.

Please post your comments . Can you see any reason why this wouldn't get media support? ...why RCOs wouldn't fix the problem for all, save those who have a vested interest in the divorce industry.

Regards
Simon Hunt
Family Law Action Group (FLAG)