New South Wales Consolidated Acts New South Wales Consolidated ActsWhere in any proceeding before any court (whether or not a court within the
meaning of this Act) the custody or upbringing of a minor, or the
administration of any property belonging to or held in trust for a minor, or
the application of the income thereof, is in question, the court, in deciding
that question, shall regard the welfare of the minor as the first and
paramount consideration, and shall not take into consideration whether from
any other point of view the claim by the father, or any right at common law
possessed by the father, in respect of such custody, upbringing,
administration, or application is superior to that of the mother, or the claim
of the mother is superior to that of the father.
In this section
"upbringing" includes religious instruction.