Josiah Hincks Family Team have specialist Child Law and Children lawyers in each office. Often it is the issue of with whom the children of the relationship should live with, or how much time they should spend with the other parent, which is the parents’ main concern either upon separation or after separation has taken place.
The Court does not have an automatic view as to whether a child should live with their mother or their father as every case is different. If parents are unable to agree the arrangements between themselves then it may be necessary to apply to the Court for a Child Arrangements Order.
The Court is required to consider the Welfare Checklist, which is contained within the Children Act 1989, when making any Child Arrangement Order regarding a child. The Court will therefore need to consider-
- The ascertainable wishes and feelings of the child concerned (considered in the light of his age and understanding);
- His/her physical, emotional and educational needs;
- The likely effect on him/her of any change in the circumstances;
- His/her age, sex, background, and any characteristics of which the Court considers relevant;
- Any harm which he/she has suffered or is at risk of suffering;
- How capable each of his parents, and other person in relation to whom the Court considers the question to be relevant, is of meeting his/her needs;
- The range of powers available to the Court under this Act in the proceedings in question.
The process
After consideration of the above and often with the assistance of CAFCASS (Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service) the Court will be in a position to make a decision as to what arrangements are in the children’s best interests.
Furthermore, often disputes arise when one parent does not hold Parental Responsibility for a child. Parental Responsibility relates to the rights and duties which a parent has in relation to a child, these include but are not limited to, decisions regarding the child’s health, religion and/or education.
Here at Josiah Hincks our Solicitors are able to provide parents with practical no-nonsense advice in relation to all issues regarding Children. Radmila Balac is part of Resolution, an organisation created to avoid unnecessary conflict within proceedings, however all members of the Family team adopt the same proactive and non-confrontational stance in order to obtain the best result for the client.
A mother automatically obtains Parental Responsibility upon birth, however for fathers this right is not so straight forward. A father obtains Parental Responsibility by –
Being married to the child’s mother
Being named on the child’s Birth Certificate as the father (and the child being born after 1st December 2003)
The mother and father signing a Parental Responsibility Agreement
The Court directing the father have Parental Responsibility under a Parental Responsibility Order
Testimonials
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Here's what some of our recent clients had to say about us and our team.
"Absolutely first class service from Jessica Jones who handled my sale as an executor of the deceased's property. Response times and clarity were excellent and the proactive communication made the entire process flow very smoothly."
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"Sue was outstanding, very quick responses and explained everything, nothing was ever too much trouble!"
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