Simon Heaney, St John’s Buildings Chambers
Decisions about interim contact are fraught with
difficulty. Judges are asked to decide and sanction arrangements when they don’t
have all of the information, evidence and assessments to hand, all of which are
integral and vital to such decision making. Is there a difference in approach
to this exercise when the court is considering private law proceedings on the
one hand and public law proceedings on the other? Having recently appeared in
the case of T Re T (Interim Care Order: Arrangements for Contact), Simon Heaney
looks at the mechanisms and procedures under each area and discusses whether as
a result, the court has in effect developed distinct approaches.
The private law arena has it seems had a sharper focus on considerations of alleged harm, resulting risk and impact upon children as a result of interim decision making whilst public law appears to have focused upon direct contact taking place unless circumstances are extreme. The Court of Appeal though has now refocused the central consideration being the welfare of the child.
The full article has published in the August issue of Family Law. Find out more or request a free 1-week trial of Family Law journal. Please quote: 100482
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