Section 67(1)(b) of the Adoption Act 2000 (NSW) requires that the parent's physical or mental condition be such that they will not be capable of considering consent within a reasonable time; a plainly temporary incapacity resolvable within a week or so will not suffice, but the incapacity need not be permanent. The 'serious cause for concern' in s 67(1)(c) can be approached generally and need not be closely linked to the specific alternatives available to the Court. Fresh evidence on appeal in adoption proceedings may be admitted where it falsifies basic assumptions on which the primary judge acted, rather than merely realising a contingency already taken into account, and where refusal would affront common sense or a sense of justice.
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