The Changing Status of Children Within Family Law from Vision to Reality?

Fitzgerald, Robyn Margaret; Graham, Anne

doi:10.1080/10383441.2011.10854704

Cited by 4 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 8 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…ICLs are not the child's legal representative (that is party representative) but rather an independent best interest advocate. 23 The FLA 28 The Judge and ICL participants were therefore selected from these states.…”

Section: Judges and Icls As Participants In The Studymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…22 Arguments for the appellant was that the oral evidence of the child's attitudes and wishes about living with the mother and the mother's friend should have been permitted into evidence and were relevant as to the state of mind of the children. 23 The court found that:…”

Section: Legislation and Case Law Regarding A Child's Wish In The Prementioning

confidence: 99%

“…22 The 2006 FLA amendments were seen to 'create optimum conditions for improving family law for children'. 23 However the legislative intention of whether a child's view is less important if categorised as an additional consideration remains unresolved. …”

Section: What the Thesis Did -Legal Synthesis Legal Analysis And A Qmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…ICLV3 said sometimes it is done internally by the courts but it is difficult to get the parties to travel to the court or the report writer to travel to the regional 213 Only ICLN3 concurred with JV2 view on the duty of the ICL. 214 Legal Aid Queensland.…”

Section: Summary Of What Icls and Judges Think Of Latmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…21 Some advocated that the use of the concept view was a better approach, on the basis that children should not have to choose between living with one or other of their parents. 22 National Legal Aid 23 proposed that wishes and views should both be used in the legislation as some children 'do have definite wishes and want to express them'. Other stakeholders said consideration of the child's view, turned on the circumstances, the age and maturity of the child and the 'focus of the legislation ... should be on the welfare of the children'.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

See 4 more Smart Citations

Is a view different from a wish? Considering the child's view in parenting disputes in Australian family law matters.

Voight¹

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

('FLA'). This thesis examines the nature and impact of the amendment to the child voice provisions of ascertaining the child's 'views' provided in section 60CC(3)(a), rather than the consideration of a child's 'wishes' as formerly required in section 68F(2)(a) FLA. The amendment to consider the child's view was intended by the legislature to broaden the scope of the requirement to listen to children by taking into account the child's perceptions and feelings about the matter, moving beyond a simpler and more crude requirement to seek the child's wish about who they would prefer to live with.Consideration of a child's views in determining custody arrangements represents one of the factors related to the central concept of the best interests of the child, which must be considered by the court. This requirement clearly is an important part of the judicial reasoning process in determining the outcomes in these cases and the change in the legislative framework from the court's requirement that they must consider a child's view -as opposed to their wishes -provides the central context explored by this thesis.The amendments produced several important questions for law and practice regarding the (1) to consider whether the FLASPRA amendment to the FLA section 60CC (3)(a) rendered the consideration of a child's view different from a wish in a technical legal sense;(2) to explore the opinions of ICLs and Judges about what they consider their respective role is in ascertaining a child's view compared with a child's wish using a qualitative study; and (3) to explore the practices of ICLs and Judges in speaking to a child in the context of ascertaining a child's view compared with a child's wish using a qualitative study. Research methods and key findings. Conclusion.This thesis contributes to knowledge by analysing the meaning of the Family Law Act provision about obtaining a child's views compared to a child's wishes and its interpretation by the courts. It also contributes to professional knowledge and practice by an innovative qualitative study which has yielded rich insights into professionals' opinions and actual practice in relation to this important Family Law provision.The doctrinal research conclusions, supported by the qualitative study concluded that a view is not different from a wish in law, meaning, weight or in practice. The doctrinal research conclusions were that although the legislature intended that in meaning a view was different to a wish, the majority of judicial decisions post-2006 did not support this. The qualitative study also concluded that in the opinion of the majority of Judges and ICLs a view was not different from a wish and the majority of Judges and ICLs did not change the way they practiced in ascertaining the child's voice, whether it was described as a wish or a view.The thesis makes recommendations for amendments to the FLA including the inserting of a definition of the word 'view' in the interpretation provisions of the FLA; the amendment of the section 60B objects provisions to incl...

show abstract

Section: Judges and Icls As Participants In The Studymentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Legislation and Case Law Regarding A Child's Wish In The Prementioning

confidence: 99%

Section: What the Thesis Did -Legal Synthesis Legal Analysis And A Qmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Summary Of What Icls and Judges Think Of Latmentioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

See 3 more Smart Citations

Is a view different from a wish? Considering the child's view in parenting disputes in Australian family law matters.

Voight¹

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

Children and Contact in the Context of Parental Separation and Family Violence: A Practice Perspective

Barker

2013

Children Australia

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Over the past seven years, in my role with Anglicare WA, I have had the privilege of listening to many separated parents share their concerns about their children's safety when spending time with the other parent who has been violent towards them. These concerns include, but are not limited to, trying to prove to the court that their children have been victims of family violence and that this risk will continue and possibly escalate during contact visits. The protective parent often reports that the children continue to be sent on contact visits even when the children experience a significant degree of trauma over their time in the care of the offending parent. In some cases the offending parent has a new partner who is also a victim of family violence and the children are exposed to this violence while on contact visits. Despite disclosures from the children, and efforts to keep them safe by reporting to the statutory agencies, I find that many of these children continue to be sent on contact visits. I am frequently told by the protective parent that when they are in court they are informed that a) there is insufficient evidence to warrant the court preventing the child from spending time with the other (violent) parent; and b) the father has the right to a meaningful relationship with his child and therefore contact will be ordered. It seems that priority is given to the parent's right to spend time with the child at the expense of the child's need, and right, to be safe.

show abstract

Barriers to Empowering Children in Private Family Law Proceedings

Bell

2016

Int J Law Policy Family

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The Changing Status of Children Within Family Law from Vision to Reality?

Cited by 4 publications

References 8 publications

Is a view different from a wish? Considering the child's view in parenting disputes in Australian family law matters.

Is a view different from a wish? Considering the child's view in parenting disputes in Australian family law matters.

Children and Contact in the Context of Parental Separation and Family Violence: A Practice Perspective

Barriers to Empowering Children in Private Family Law Proceedings

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About