A judge who ordered a mother to stop breastfeeding because she got a tattoo initially wanted her to stop because she had postnatal depression, a court has heard.
The mother, known as Ms Jackson, was ordered to stop breastfeeding her 11-month-old baby by the federal circuit court judge Matthew Myers on 5 June. Myers said there was an unacceptable risk of harm to the baby because the mother could have contracted HIV.
Jackson, 20, was tattooed on her hand and her foot in a reputable tattoo parlour in May, the court heard, and has returned negative tests for HIV and hepatitis. Her appeal was heard in the family court on Friday in Sydney in a specially scheduled urgent hearing.
Myers initially told Jackson: “Don’t breastfeed any more. Seriously don’t. It’s not in the best interest of the child.
“I seriously want the mother to consider [stopping breastfeeding] before I make an order to prevent it, and I will do it. I don’t care if it hits the front page.”
He wanted her to stop because of her mental health problems because she had been diagnosed with postnatal depression and he did not believe she was on the medication she should be.
The father, also 20, had not initially applied for an injunction to stop the woman breastfeeding and the court heard the “genesis” of the idea came from Myers during a custody hearing.
Myers could not make an injunction on her breastfeeding based on the woman’s mental health and the court heard he then went looking for an evidence-based reason.
“He firmly made up his mind before hearing all of the evidence,” Jackson’s barrister, Claire Cantrall, told the court.
The appeal is being heard by justices Robert Aldridge, Judith Ryan and Hilary Hannan. Cantrall called the injunction “extraordinary”. Ryan agreed it was unprecedented.
Cantrall argued there was a lack of “evidentiary foundation” for the breastfeeding injunction.
“[Myer] ought to have taken into account the inherent unlikelihood of the mother contracting HIV,” she said. “The issue of risk does not go over a mere possibility. It is an extraordinary injunction.”
Myer dismissed evidence from the World Health Organisation that recommends children be breastfed until they are two years old, with Cantrall telling the court the balance of risk and benefit to the child “simply did not occur” in Myer’s judgment.
Ryan remarked that it was the bench’s view the benefits of breastfeeding were “uncontroversial”.
Cantrall said Myer failed to properly consider the consequences of depriving the child of the mother’s capacity to breastfeed.
The mother attended court, sitting still and looking ahead throughout the proceedings while the father did not attend which Ryan said was “disappointing”.
The hearing continues.
