Children Law FAQs

The law states that a child should be able to have a relationship with both parents as long as it is safe and in their best interests. If you have concerns about your child having contact with the father or mother, you should try to discuss these concerns with the other parent to see whether an amicable agreement can be reached. If this is not possible, subject to there not being a Court order in place, you can stop contact. You will need to be able to justify why contact was stopped should the case go to Court.

If you are in any doubt as to your legal rights or what to do, please get in touch with us.

There are lots of ways to try and deal with a dispute, even when talking face to face seems not to be working any more. A letter from a solicitor can usually assist, Mediation can also work for some families. A specially trained mediator, will have a roundtable meeting with both parents to see whether an agreement can be sorted. We can refer to mediators that we have good relationships with and we can draw up an agreement to reflect what has been agreed.

The rights of a father can depend on whether the father has parental responsibility for the child. Father’s will automatically have parental responsibility if they are on the child’s birth certificate or were married to the child’s mother. Parental responsibility can be ordered by a Court order if a father doesn’t have it.

The law is that a child should have a relationship with both parents. There is also nothing in law that says that a child should live with a mother. The Court decides these matters based on what is in a child’s best interests.

For further information about Father’s Rights, please visit this page.

You should promptly speak one of our solicitors to assess whether you need to take emergency action, e.g if there is a risk that your children will leave within the next 6 weeks. Court orders can then be applied for to try to stop them from leaving. It is much easier to deal with the situation before the children have left than it is to try to get them home.

The judge will usually organise CAFCASS to undertake a thorough investigation into whether a move is in the children's best interests. Detailed case preparation is essential in these cases and a solicitor is highly recommended. These decision will have life changing consequences for the children.

If you do not have parental responsibility for the children, your former partner can remove them from the country without your consent or the permission of the court. You will therefore need to take the initiative and apply to the court if you wish to oppose a move abroad.

The Judge will listen to all the legal arguments and then make a decision. The Judge will make decisions based on what is in the child’s best interests. The Judge will look at the welfare checklist from the Children Act 1989 to assist him/her.