A Rotorua woman lied to police about being raped and kidnapped by her partner to get revenge on him for seriously assaulting her, the Rotorua District Court was told. The 55-year-old, who has interim name suppression, pleaded guilty to a charge of fabricating evidence and will be sentenced in December. The woman alleged her partner […]

A Westport man who threatened to shoot people unless his tax debt was wiped was jailed for two years when he appeared in the Westport District Court. Wayne William Anderson, 45, was sentenced to two years in jail for drink-driving, possessing a rifle and ammunition and holding a firearm without a licence. On July 22, […]

A 20-year-old man who allegedly snatched his two-year-old son from his former partner in the Far North yesterday will appear in the Kaikohe District Court today. Up to 50 police, including the armed offenders squad, were involved in the operation from about 7.30am. The boy and his mother were the subject of a protection order. […]

First it was Wayne Pruden who kidnapped his son, now another father has taken the law into his own hands abducting his son, so is the Family Court giving fathers a fair go, or are some Dads out of control? Streaming video of Holmes interviewing Jim Bagnal from Union of Fathers

Mothers who kill their children may not be able to argue post-natal depression to avoid a murder conviction after a Government-ordered review of infanticide laws. Justice Minister Phil Goff has asked the Law Commission to consider whether infanticide should be repealed, because sentencing laws now allow judges to consider mitigating factors for murder and vary […]

Wiping away tears, Hamilton man Wayne Pruden talks about how he went to pick up his 15-month old son yesterday and came home without him. He should have had his 15-month-old son returned to him after a four-week holiday in Vietnam. But Mr Pruden, 42, has no idea where his son is, though it is […]

The New Zealand Law Society’s October 2004 Advanced Counsel for Child Workshop at Waipuna Lodge in Auckland was the target of a Union of Fathers protest last Monday. Men have long complained that counsels for child often act as a second lawyer for the mother, and typically fail to protect the father/child relationship. Union of […]

Government plans to give Family Court judges the power to vet media stories is a form of censorship that journalists strongly oppose, Commonwealth Press Union (CPU) New Zealand chairman Gavin Ellis said today. Family Court proceedings would be opened to the public and media with tight restrictions in place, the Government announced yesterday. Changes were […]

Fathers in New Zealand are waiting for their own Batman to raise awareness for their cause. A man dressed as the caped crusader has drawn world wide attention for the plight of dads estranged from their children after staging a five hour protest perched on a ledge at Buckingham Palace. The Union of Fathers here […]

The Government is not convinced major changes to the structure of courts are needed but has ordered officials to look into this further. However, Justice Minister Phil Goff and Courts Minister Rick Barker said its focus was first on improving efficiency in the courts system rather than planning radical changes to its structure. The Government […]

ACT New Zealand Deputy Leader and Social Welfare Spokesman Dr Muriel Newman today urged Chief Family Court Judge Peter Boshier to continue his push for more openness in the Family Court. “The Care of Children Bill currently before Parliament is a step in the right direction towards greater openness, but it does not go far […]

The select committee report on the Care of Children Bill is now available (as a pdf).

Principal Family Court Judge Peter Boshier says the Care of Children Bill before Parliament will see more children being heard directly in court and their views given more weight. Judges had traditionally not welcomed directly interviewing children in Family Court cases, preferring to learn their wishes through psychologists’ reports, Judge Boshier said yesterday. But many […]

Press Release: Victoria University of Wellington Judge to address Family Court seminar The role of the Family Court will be the focus of debate at a one-day seminar on Monday 30 August, organised in association with Victoria University’s Roy McKenzie Centre for the Study of Families and hosted by the New Zealand Psychological Association. Issues […]

Judicial activism creates a vicious cycle that undermines confidence in court decisions, says a long-serving United States federal appellate judge, Diarmuid O’Scannlain, brought to New Zealand by the US State Department. Judge O’Scannlain referred to the present “conversation” between New Zealand politicians and the judiciary on the question of judicial activism – when judgments reflect […]

Hon Rick Barker There is a real mood of willingness for the Family Court system to be brought into the 21st Century. As family changes involve step parents and children, single parents and extended family – the role of the family court changes. The government is listening to what practitioners envisage for the court. We […]

By Professor Stephen Baskerville, Ph.D The result of three decades of unrestrained divorce is that huge numbers of people — many of them government officials — now have a vested professional and financial interest in encouraging it. Divorce today is not simply a phenomenon; it is a regime — a vast bureaucratic empire that permeates […]

Stepparents and non-resident parents play just as important role in the behaviour and well-being of their children as the parent they live with, Victoria University researchers have found. Centre Director, Associate Professor Jan Pryor, says the study found children’s relationships with their stepparents and non-resident parents are much more important than previously thought and not […]

A Christchurch man who wrongly spent three years in jail on sex charges after a judge made a procedural error is seeking hundreds of thousands of dollars in compensation. Mervyn Finlayson, 60 — a stroke victim with a serious heart condition — was jailed for six years in 2000 on charges of indecently assaulting a […]

Sydney: The Australian Federal Police are appealing for help to track down a 4-year-old New Zealand girl believed to be have been taken across the Tasman by her mother in defiance of a court order. Rebekah Jayne Stewart has been missing since March 2003, when former New Zealand policewoman Roanne Jill Stewart is believed to […]

Parents who repeatedly use their children as pawns in custody battles may be asked to pay a “good behaviour” bond to try to ensure they respect access orders. The court-ordered payments, which could reach thousands of dollars, will be cash or bonds listed against assets, such as a house or car. The decision to change […]

The Australian Federal Government has announced an overhaul of family law arrangements, with plans to give men involved in marriage break-ups greater access to their children. The changes also include new centres to provide compulsory mediation to separating couples. The shake-up does not include a new families tribunal to hear custody cases, which was the […]

Estranged [UK] fathers will be allowed increased access to their children under new legislation to be announced this week. A Green Paper will propose changes to the family court system that will include the suggestion that both parents are allowed “frequent and continuous contact” with their children. “We recognise that there are a number of […]

A national network of family relationship centres to help separating parents focus on the needs of their children has emerged as the [Australian] Federal Government’s preferred model in revamping the family law system. Staffed by professional counsellors and mediators, they would help parents develop a post-separation parenting plan, give initial advice on Centrelink payments and […]