3 Reference of certain matters relating to children
(1) The following matters, to the extent to which they are not otherwise
included in the legislative powers of the Parliament of the Commonwealth, are
referred to the Parliament of the Commonwealth for a period commencing on the
day on which this Act commences and ending on the day fixed, pursuant to
section 4, as the day on which the reference under this section shall
terminate, but no longer, namely--
(a) the maintenance of children and the
payment of expenses in relation to children or child bearing,
(b) the custody
and guardianship of, and access to, children,
(c) the determination of a
child's parentage for the purposes of the law of the Commonwealth, whether or
not the determination of the child's parentage is incidental to the
determination of any other matter within the legislative powers of the
Commonwealth.
(2) Subject to subsection (2A), the matters referred by
subsection (1) do not include the matter of the adoption of children or the
matter of the taking, or the making of provision for or in relation to
authorising the taking, of action that would prevent or interfere with--
(a) a
Minister of the Crown, an officer of the State, an officer of an adoption
agency approved under a law of the State, or any other person or body, having
or acquiring the custody, guardianship, care or control of children under a
provision specified in Schedule 1,
(c) the jurisdiction of the Supreme Court
to make orders in respect of children who are in such custody, guardianship,
care or control, or
(d) the jurisdiction of a court of the State, or other
body, under a provision specified in Schedule 1, to make orders, or take any
other action, in respect of--
(i) the custody, guardianship, care or control
of children, or
(ii) access to children or the supervision of children.
(2A)
The matters referred by subsection (1) include the matter of the taking, or
the making of provision for or in relation to authorising the taking, of
action that would prevent or interfere with a matter referred to in subsection
(2)(a)-(d) if--
(a) the Minister of the Crown responsible for the
administration of the relevant provision specified in Schedule 1, or
(b) a
person authorised, in writing, by that Minister of the Crown to act on his or
her behalf for the purposes of Part VII of the Family Law Act 1975 of the
Commonwealth, as amended and in force for the time being,
consents, in
writing, to the taking of such action by way of instituting, or continuing,
proceedings under that Act in a court having jurisdiction under that Act.
(3)
In the preceding provisions of this section--
(a) the references to children
shall be read as references to persons under the age of 18 years,
(b) the
references to the maintenance of, and the payment of expenses in relation to,
children shall be read as including references to the maintenance of, and the
payment of expenses in relation to, persons who have attained that age and
have special needs in respect of maintenance or expenses by reason of being
engaged in a course of education or training or by reason of a physical or
mental handicap, and
(c) the references to a provision specified in Schedule
1 shall be read as references to the provision as amended and in force from
time to time, and as including a reference to any provision or provisions
replacing that provision and as amended and in force from time to time.
