Court Orders About Children
How does the court approach cases about children?
What happens when parents cannot agree on what arrangements should be made for their children?
There are no specific rules about arrangements for children following relationship breakdown. What works for one family will not always work for another. The Court’s approach to such arrangements following divorce (or separation) is one of ‘hands off’. This means that the Court will not get involved in arrangements for children unless there is a specific disagreement between parents. After all, who knows the children better than their own parents?
Disagreements arise from time to time, and it is sometimes necessary to refer matters to the Court for assistance in sorting out disputes. There are four main orders a Court can make, which can be summarised as follows:
Residence Order
A residence order states which parent a child will live with. These can be made in favour of either parent, and in some situations other third parties.
A residence order does not mean that the other parent will have less rights or responsibilities for their child, and it does not revoke their parental responsibility.
Residence orders can come equipped with conditions such as ensuring that the “non resident parent” is kept fully informed about any aspects of the child’s welfare.
A residence order will also affect the parents ability to take the children abroad.
Contact Order
As the title suggests, this type of order is made in favour of a parent with whom the child does not live. The order provides for periods of contact for the ‘non resident parent’. Contact can take many forms; such as visits, overnight stays or even by other means such as telephone, letter or email.
Specific Issue Order
A parent (and sometimes other third parties) can apply to the Court in respect of any “specific issue” concerning their children. Common examples of this are disputes over a child’s schooling or medical treatment.
The order will only deal with the specific issue in question, and cannot be used as a way of attempting to review other arrangements for the child such as contact or residence.
Prohibited Steps Order
This order prevents a parent from taking any action arising as a result of parental responsibility without first seeking the permission of the Court. This could involve preventing the removal of a child from the country.
Again such an order will only deal with the issue in question, and cannot be used as a way of attempting to review other arrangements for the child such as contact or residence.
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