Philip Ruddock (Berowra, Liberal Party, Attorney-General) Share this | Hansard source

That is a matter for you. Let me say that I regard the advice of the court as valuable, but I do not regard it as binding. Legislation is the prerogative of the parliament, and the parliament is giving advice for the courts to view these two matters as matters that should be addressed in priority. The others are factors that can be taken into account, but they are not all equal. Yes, I know that there are some judges who believe that family law is, in fact, owned by the court and that they will tell us what it is, but the Family Law Act is an enactment of this parliament. It is the obligation of the court to give us advice as to how that enactment is going to be lawfully implemented, but they are to be guided by it. I am surprised that the shadow minister would want to move from that situation, particularly considering the very strong support given to this measure by her colleagues.

Question negatived.

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