Family law notes fully updated for recent exams at Oxford, UK. These notes covers all the major LLB family law cases and so are perfect for anyone doing an LLB in the UK or a great supplement for those doing LLBs abroad, whether that be in Ireland, Canada, Hong Kong or Malaysia (University of London).
These notes are formed directly from a reading of the cases and main texts and are vigorous and concise.
Every major topic is dealt with in three ways:
A) One page summaries of important c...
The following is a more accessible plain text extract of the PDF sample above, taken from our Family Law Notes. Due to the challenges of extracting text from PDFs, it will have odd formatting:
What happens if the residential parent opposes contact?
Opposition can be castigated
Re O (Contact: Imposition of Conditions)
Bingham MR
Neither parent should be encouraged or permitted to think that the more unco-operative they are, the more likely they are to get their own way
Where direct contact cannot for the time being be ordered, it is ordinarily highly desirable that there should be indirect contact
so that the child grows up knowing of the love and interest of the absent parent with whom, in due course, direct contact should be established.
This calls for a measure of restraint, common sense and unselfishness on the part of both parents
Swinton Thomas LJ
Under that provision, in my judgment, a court can impose conditions which require positive steps to be taken by one parent or the other in order to facilitate the contact
But there may be good reasons for following the wishes of the non-resident partner
Re P (Contact Discretion)
Held
Necessary to distinguish two kinds of cases
The first is where the opposition of the contact is justified:
if the residential parent’s fears are genuinely and rationally held than the court may refuse contact
The second is where the opposition is emotional and there is no rational basis for it
In such a case, contact will be ordered unless doing so would cause the residential parent such distress that their child’s welfare is harmed
Focus should be perhaps on non-resident parent’s contact
Re M (Minors) (Contact: Violent Parent)
If F wants to have contact, then he must behave in more suitable way
Herring: this move is good as it does not just castigate M’s opposition, but focuses on whether F’s conduct is what is causing the difficulties.
Me: movement to qualified right talk may further encourage an idea of parents having responsibilities.
The problem of non-resident parent’s fears
The fact that both parents hate each other is likely to render contact ineffective,
As it requires the co-operation of the resident parent to ensure it happens
And the child can become an unwitting pawn in the dispute, which impacts on their welfare
What about where the parent and/or child has suffered domestic violence?
The concerns
1. Children who live in an atmosphere of domestic violence suffer psychological harm, even if they do not actually witness the abuse
2. There is evidence that there are statistical links between child abuse and spousal abuse
3. There is a fear that a father may be able to use contact arrangements to continue to dominate and abuse M
Contact arrangements can be used to discover M’s address, and therefore for F to turn up and threaten/abuse her.
4. One survey which looked at cases where contact had been ordered even though there had been domestic violence, suggested that 25% of children were abused as a result of the contact.
The law
Re L (A Child: Domestic Violence)
Butler Sloss P
Dr Sturge and Dr Glaser considered the question in what circumstances should the court give consideration to a child having no direct contact with the non-resident parent.
In their view there should be no automatic assumption that contact to a previously or currently violent parent was in the child's interests,
if anything the assumption should be in the opposite direction and he should prove why he can offer something of benefit to the child
The general principle that contact with the non-resident parent is in the interests of the child may sometimes have discouraged sufficient attention being paid
to the adverse effects on children living in the...
Buy the full version of these notes or essay plans and more in our Family Law Notes.
Family law notes fully updated for recent exams at Oxford, UK. These notes covers all the major LLB family law cases and so are perfect for anyone doing an LLB in the UK or a great supplement for those doing LLBs abroad, whether that be in Ireland, Canada, Hong Kong or Malaysia (University of London).
These notes are formed directly from a reading of the cases and main texts and are vigorous and concise.
Every major topic is dealt with in three ways:
A) One page summaries of important c...
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