Shared residence

Re F (shared residence order) [2003] EWCA Civ 592

In D v D (shared residence order) [2001] 1 FLR 495, the Court of Appeal established that a shared residence order could be made where it was demonstrably in the best interests of the children and that there was no longer a need to show exceptional circumstances, or even a positive benefit. If children were spending a substantial amount of time with each parent, shared residence may be an entirely appropriate order to make even though the children spent more time with one parent than the other. In the present case, the father had always shown great commitment to the children and resigned from the Navy to enable his plans to become fluid. The mother proposed residing with the children in Edinburgh. The court and family reporter recommended a residence order to the mother with generous contact to the father but the Court of Appeal upheld the judge’s shared residence order on the grounds that the order proposed by the court and family reporter might be used by the mother to exclude the father from the children’s lives. He found the father to be excellent in contrast to the mother, who had many flaws, and the shared residence order acknowledged the mother’s freedom to move to Edinburgh where the children would primarily reside with her during term time with a flexible and detailed pattern of residence with the father, demonstrating that each parent was of equal status and importance.