Our services: children and divorce
When parents separate, decisions must be made about where the children will live and how much time they spend with the absent parent.
The courts encourage parents to make arrangements between themselves where possible and will only make an order where it is in the best interests of the child.
Where the court does intervene, the welfare of the child is paramount. The court is able to make orders that may:
- decide which parent a child will live with (residence order)
- decide how much contact an absent parent will have (contact order)
- prevent certain things from happening (a prohibited steps order)
- deal with issues including education, religion or change of name (specific issue order).
Our expert team will provide the best possible legal advice to help you through this difficult time, whether representing you in pre-proceedings negotiation or in court, in all types of children proceedings.
If the matter is brought before the court, the court will often appoint a Cafcass (Children and Family Court Advisory Support Service) officer to help resolve the dispute.
The officer will meet with both parties and, depending on the child’s age, try to establish their wishes and feelings. Using a “welfare checklist”, they will make recommendations in a written report, which assists the court and the parties in moving towards a resolution.
We would be happy to explain these procedures and how they might relate to you in more detail.
Parental responsibility
Parental responsibility (PR) is loosely defined in law as the:
- rights
- duties
- powers
- responsibilities and
- authority
which by law a parent has in relation to a child, for example being able to consent to medical treatment, having a say in the child’s education and religion and consenting or objecting to a change of the child’s name.
If the parents are married, both automatically have PR. If they are unmarried, only the mother automatically has PR. Unless the father’s name is on the birth certificate and the child was born after 1 December 2003, he can only acquire PR by entering into a PR agreement with the mother or by a court order.
To successfully obtain a PR order, the father must show he has a degree of commitment to the child. We can advise you fully on all aspects of this.
For further details or an appointment, please call:
- Michael Brady at our Cirencester office on 01285 654875
- Janice Leyland at our Gloucester office on 01452 508800.
