The Godparent System Alphonce

2013

In a Scandinavian perspective; the family and the individual have changed place during the 20th century. Today, the law takes its starting point in the individual – not in the family. A consequence of this development is that it no longer is legally possible to relate the good family to a particular societal institution. Marriage as an institution has been individualized and the goodness of the family has to relate to the well being of the individuals instead. This article shows that within this historical development the private-public law divide has not been seriously challenged. The inconsistencies stemming from it are demonstrated and it is shown how they imply a legal design more preoccupied with traditional divisions of power and positions than with an interest in the reality of the people it is aimed at. In the article it is argued from within the best interest principle that the historical development necessitates a re-thinking of the distinction between child welfare law an...

The International Journal of Children's Rights, 2020

This paper examines what set of familial circumstances allow for the justifiable interference with the right to respect for family life under Article 8, echr. We analyse all the Courts' judgments on adoptions from care to find out what the Court means by a "family unit" and the "child´s best interest". Our analysis show that the status and respect of the child's de facto family life is changing. This resonates with a view that children do not only have formal rights, but that they are recognised as individuals The International Journal of Children's Rights (2020) 1-33

2014

This article laments the individualistic construction of the best interests of the child principle. Decision making in a family context goes beyond a mere trumpeting of the interests of the individual child and involves balancing various competing interests. Decisions often claimed to be made in the interests of children are not just about children – they are an attempt to balance the competing interests of family members. A child's best interests are often limited by the broad interests of the community (especially in communitarian societies) and the rights of others, particularly the rights and interests of parents, siblings, caregivers and other persons exercising parental responsibilities. Consequently, decisions made in a family context usually seek to balance different family members' rights and interests. Drawing inspiration from literature on the subject, the article advocates the adoption of a holistic approach to the welfare principle. It is shown, towards the end of the article, that the South African courts and legislature have rightly endorsed the notion that the fact that the best interests of the child are 'paramount' does not mean that it is not limitable. Much depends on the competing interests at stake, the factors that must be weighed in the process of making a value judgment and the weight to be accorded to each factor in light of the facts of each case.

2012

South Africa p 2 3. Hague Convention on the Protection of Children and Cooperation in Respect of Inter-country Adoption p 6 3.1 The scope of the Hague Convention p 7 3.2 The objectives of the Hague Convention p 8 3.3 Central authorities p 9 3.4 Duties of the state of origin as set forth by the Hague Convention p10 3.4.1 Adoptability of the child p10 3.4.2 Subsidiary principle p10 3.4.3 Parties to the adoption p11 3.4.4 The voice of the child p12 3.5 The duties of receiving states p13 3.5.1 Eligibility and suitability of adoptive parents p13 3.5.2 Counselling of adoptive parents p14 3.5.3 Authorisation for child to enter into and reside in receiving state p15 3.6 Recognition of adoption p16 3.7 The Hague Convention: Culture, race, religion and language p17 3.8 Conclusion p18 4. Children's Act 38 of 2005 p21 4.1 Introduction p21 4.2 Central authority p22 4.3 Adoptability p23 4.4 Eligibility of prospective parents p24 4.5 Consent p24 4.6 Procedure p26 4.6.1 South Africa as a sending country p26 ii 4.6.2 South Africa as a receiving country p27 4.7 Birth information p27 4.8 Conclusion p27 5. The Best Interests of the Child p29 5.1 The historical development of the 'best interests of the child' principle in South Africa p29 5.2 Difficulties with the 'best interests' principle p31 5.3 Best interests of the child 'checklist' p32 5.4 International instruments and the best interests of the child p34 5.4.1 Introduction p34 5.4.2 United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child p35 5.4.3 African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child p38 5.5 Limitation of rights and the best interests of the child principle p41 5.6 Attachment and the best interests of the child p42 5.7 Conclusion p44 6. International instruments and adoption p45 6.1 The CRC and inter-country adoption p45 6.2 ACRWC and adoption p46 6.3 Conclusion p47 7. The human rights approach on inter-country adoption p49 7.1 Introduction p49 7.2 Summary of cases p49 7.2.1 The Angelina Jolie case p49 7.2.2 The Madonna Louise Richie case p50 7.3 Lessons on inter-country adoption p51 7.3.1 Subsidiary principle p51 7.3.2 The child's country of origin p53 7.3.3 The problems with inter-country adoptions p54 7.3.4 Inter-country adoption under attack p55 7.3.5 Position taken by critics on inter-country adoptions p55 iii 7.3.6 The rights of the birth parents p57 7.3.7 Implications of trans-racial adoptions p58 7.3.8 Determining why the child is in need of adoption p60 7.4 Conclusion p61 8. Family care, parental care or appropriate alternative care p62 8.1 Aan my Ma en Pa (Andre en Joyce)

2010

This Article addresses the novel question of whether states parties can successfully implement the Children’s Rights Convention by placing legal obligations on prospective parents, thereby influencing not just a child’s environment, but also the procreation of that child. First, the Article takes a unique version of the child-centered perspective, one that recognizes that as we move back in time in the direction of and even before a child’s birth, our obligations to the child grow because our actions become ever more influential. The perspective also takes into account current moral theories of parental obligation to prospective children. The Article then interprets the Convention from this perspective, exploring whether it requires states to pursue policies that heighten prospective parents’ perceptions of the duties they owe their prospective children before having them. If the Convention represents a sea change in the international legal community’s thinking about the relationshi...

Child Abuse Review, 2004

Recent legal and policy changes, including the introduction of the Human Rights Act, provide the context for the new child welfare and protection policies proposed for England. These proposals are discussed from a legal perspective in relation to early and coordinated intervention, sharing information between agencies and with children and families, partnership with children, information management, and structural and legal change. Consideration is also given to issues overlooked by the Green Paper, such as immigration and asylum, youth justice and the whole family justice system. The discussion concludes by arguing for the need for integrating cultural and structural change and for leadership (and investment of resources) across government to achieve such goals.

The notion of the 'best interests of the child' plays a central role in Australian family law. Section 60CA of the Family Law Act 1975 (Cth), as amended in 2006, reiterates the longstanding principle that, in making a parenting order, 'a court must regard the best interests of the child as the paramount consideration.' The Australian judiciary has adopted a strong interpretation of the paramountcy principle, according to which the interests of children prevail absolutely over the interests of all other parties. The authors argue that such a strong emphasis on children’s interests cannot be ethically justified; only a weak view of the paramountcy principle can be supported on ethical grounds.

Centre for Research on Discretion and Paternalism, 2022

The Centre addresses core themes in the social sciences by examining the government's use of power toward its citizens and the justifications of state interventions into people's lives. Important areas of empirical focus are child welfare and children's rights. Research at the Centre is comparative between nations, systems and individuals. The Centre is interdisciplinary, with researchers from across the world and from many disciplines-including political science, sociology, law, philosophy, psychology and social work. We use multilevel data sources in our approach, including interviews with experts, laws and regulations, and court judgements. We apply multiple research methods, including interviews, observation, text analysis, survey vignettes and survey experiments. The Centre works to communicate research-based knowledge about child welfare, children's rights, the welfare state, discretion and state power. Our researchers regularly participate as lecturers and frequent appearances in the media. News and research results are also published on our websites, Twitter and in our monthly newsletter. We also host and co-organize guest lectures, seminars and conferences. For more information, visit our webpage: http://www.discretion.uib.no This project has received funding from the European Research Council (ERC) under the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation program (grant agreement no. 724460). Publications from the project reflects only the authors' views and the funding agency is not responsible for any use that may be made of the information contained therein.