Care and contact arrangements — application for admonishment — warrant to enforce — breach of parenting order — COVID-19 — coronavirus — global pandemic — lockdown restrictions — Care of Children Act 2004, ss 3, 4, 5, 6 & 68-78 — Family Violence Act 2018 — R v S FC Whanganui FAM-1999-083-326, 6 August 2007 — LH v FD [2010] NZFLR 696 — R v M FC Manukau FAM-2005-057-336, 10 March 2008. This was an application by the father for admonishment of the respondent mother for withholding contact of their children during the COVID-19 Alert Level 4 lockdown. The parties had a history of disputes in the Family Court relating to the care arrangements of their children. A shared care arrangement was in place, and in this instance the mother had refused to allow the father to have contact with the children for the duration of the Level 4 lockdown, citing the lockdown restrictions as being the reason for withholding contact. Lawyer for child had warned the mother she would be in breach of the parenting order should she continue to withhold contact, as this was contrary to the government's advice on shared care arrangements during lockdown. Following this, the mother then cited medical reasons for withholding contact. As a result, the father missed out on several key family events. Lawyer for child suggested that it was not appropriate to admonish the mother on this occasion, but that a warrant should lie with the Court to enforce the parenting order. On the issue of the alleged breach of the parenting order, the Judge was not prepared to find that there had been a deliberate breach given the unusual circumstances of the lockdown, the ensuing confusion, and caution exercised on behalf of the mother. The Judge considered it did not justify an admonishment in these circumstances, but warned that the actions of the mother constituted a breach of guardianship obligations and were wrong and should not be repeated. The Judge was also not prepared to issue an indefinite warrant to lie with the Court, instead issuing a warrant in line with lawyer for child's recommendation to enforce contact visits for the next six weeks. Judgment Date: 8 May 2020. * * * Note: names have been changed to comply with legal requirements. * * *