Mother used Tabasco sauce as punishment

A MOTHER who forced her children to eat Tabasco sauce as a form of punishment and brainwashed them not to call her former husband "dad" has been ordered by a court to undergo psychological treatment after a judge found her actions had been "entirely inappropriate".

Children ordered back to US

A LEBANESE-Australian woman left destitute after a failed marriage has been ordered to return to the US with her two sons despite the Family Court accepting her claims that her Lebanese-American husband planned to take the boys to Lebanon, where they would "join Hezbollah and die like real men".

Boy, 14, allowed to 'become a girl'

THE Family Court has permitted a teenage boy to have hormone treatment to become a girl.

Teenager allowed to become a girl

THE Family Court has permitted a teenage boy to have hormone treatment to become a girl.

DOCS to strip grandparents of payments for childcare

HUNDREDS of people who look after their grandchildren full-time risk losing a special payment worth between $400 and $600 per child a fortnight after the NSW Department of Community Services announced a review.

Jailed mothers refuse to help find their children

POLICE are concerned about the welfare of two children allegedly kidnapped by their mothers from their foster carer more than two months ago.

Mental impairment defence in bridge death

MENTAL impairment will be central to the defence of a man accused of throwing his four-year-old daughter to her death off the West Gate Bridge, the Supreme Court has heard.

Another pay rise for federal judges

FEDERAL judges have been awarded a second pay rise in a month after a tribunal indicated it would defy a call by Attorney-General Robert McClelland to exercise wage restraint.

Mediation laws help spare divided couples court pain

LAWS aimed at keeping separating couples out of court by forcing unresolved disputes to mediation may have contributed to a decline in bitter court contests.

Children overload

Ahead of the state Ombudsman's imminent report on child protection, Carol Nader looks at a system swamped with referrals and buckling under the pressure.

'Rough justice' fear in Family Court blitz

THE Family Court will fly judges to Sydney from four other states for a September blitz in an attempt to clear a backlog of 30 of its most difficult cases.

States urged to follow Victoria on family violence

STATE Attorney-General Rob Hulls has urged other states to follow Victoria's lead in expanding the definition of domestic violence and has backed a national register of intervention orders.

Domestic abuse target in new law

CLAIMS that controversial changes to family law have made it harder for women and children to escape abusive relationships will be investigated by the Federal Government as part of a tough new approach to domestic violence.

Swedish woman faces jail for abducting sons

A SWEDISH woman who abducted her two Australian sons from their father and spent several months on the run with them has been sentenced to 10 months' jail.

Family law review must beware of backward steps

Fair and compassionate law is not achieved by ideological prescription.

Child's view best counter to court cases

ACRIMONIOUS separations are less likely to end up in court if the children's views are included during mediation, compared to cases where only parents are involved, according to findings considered by the Federal Government as it conducts an evaluation of family law reforms.

Ex-Brethren father loses five-year court battle over children

A former sect member's only contact with his son and daughter will be permission to buy their photographs, reports Michael Bachelard.

Trainee At Camp Had Australian Accent, Court Told

A KOREAN-AMERICAN met a man with an Australian accent at a Lashkar-e-Taiba training camp in Pakistan weeks after the September 11 attacks, a Sydney court was told yesterday. At the beginning of the trial the Crown alleged that one of the accused men, Moustafa Cheikho, had trained with Lashkar-e-Taiba in Pakistan - an allegation he has disputed. Yesterday the jury was told it could consider Mr Kwon's evidence in relation to Moustafa Cheikho only, not in relation to any of his four co-accused.

Call Goes Out For Family Court Judge

NEWCASTLE Family Court is seeking a new judge.