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Book Details
Abstract
This best-selling textbook combines clear and accessible coverage of the key principles of family law with a contextual, critical approach that explores the theories, debates and ethical dilemmas that underpin this complex subject.
Table of Contents
| Section Title | Page | Action | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cover | Cover | ||
| Title Page | iii | ||
| Copyright Page | iv | ||
| Dedication | v | ||
| Brief contents | vii | ||
| Contents | ix | ||
| Preface | xxi | ||
| Acknowledgements | xxiii | ||
| Table of cases | xxiv | ||
| Table of statutes | lvii | ||
| Table of statutory instruments | lxvi | ||
| Table of European andInternational legislation | lxviii | ||
| 1 What is family law? | 1 | ||
| 1. Introduction | 1 | ||
| 2. Seeking a definition of the family | 2 | ||
| A. The person in the street’s definition | 2 | ||
| B. A formalistic definition | 3 | ||
| C. A function-based definition | 3 | ||
| D. An idealised definition | 4 | ||
| E. A self-definition approach | 4 | ||
| F. Do we give up? | 4 | ||
| G. Discussion of how the law defines families | 5 | ||
| H. The Government’s definition of family | 6 | ||
| I. New families? | 7 | ||
| 3. Should family life be encouraged? | 12 | ||
| A. Proposing new visions for families | 14 | ||
| 4. Approaches to family law | 16 | ||
| A. What is family law? | 16 | ||
| B. How to examine family law | 16 | ||
| 5. Current issues in family law | 23 | ||
| A. How the state interacts with families | 23 | ||
| B. Privatisation of family law | 23 | ||
| C. Autonomy | 25 | ||
| D. The decline in ‘moral judgements’ | 26 | ||
| E. Sending messages through the law | 28 | ||
| F. Solicitors, barristers and family law | 28 | ||
| G. Non-legal responses to family problems | 29 | ||
| H. Rules or discretion | 29 | ||
| I. Multiculturalism and religious diversity | 30 | ||
| 6. The Human Rights Act 1998 and family law | 33 | ||
| 7. Conclusion | 33 | ||
| Further reading | 34 | ||
| 2 Family justice | 36 | ||
| 1. Introduction | 36 | ||
| 2. The Family Justice Review and reform of legal aid | 36 | ||
| 3. Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 | 38 | ||
| A. The exceptional categories | 38 | ||
| B. Domestic violence | 38 | ||
| C. Children at risk | 41 | ||
| D. Exceptional funding | 41 | ||
| 4. The impact of the legal aid cuts | 42 | ||
| 5. The justification for the cuts | 42 | ||
| 6. The objections to LASPO | 44 | ||
| A. Human rights | 44 | ||
| B. Litigants in person | 47 | ||
| C. Parties facing litigants in person | 49 | ||
| D. Expert witnesses | 49 | ||
| E. LASPO: the future | 50 | ||
| 7. Mediation | 50 | ||
| A. Introduction | 50 | ||
| B. What is mediation? | 52 | ||
| C. The role of the mediator | 52 | ||
| D. The benefits of mediation | 55 | ||
| E. The disadvantages of mediation | 58 | ||
| F. The false dichotomy of mediation and litigation | 62 | ||
| G. Collaborative family law | 63 | ||
| 8. Arbitration | 64 | ||
| 9. Religious tribunals | 66 | ||
| 10. Conclusion | 68 | ||
| Further reading | 69 | ||
| 3 Marriage, civil partnership and cohabitation | 71 | ||
| 1. Introduction | 71 | ||
| 2. Statistics on marriage | 73 | ||
| 3. What is marriage? | 74 | ||
| A. The meaning of marriage | 74 | ||
| B. The legal definition of marriage | 76 | ||
| C. Why do people marry? | 77 | ||
| 4. Marriage as a status or contract | 78 | ||
| 5. The presumption of marriage | 80 | ||
| 6. Non-marriages, void marriages and voidable marriages | 81 | ||
| A. The difference between divorce and nullity | 82 | ||
| B. The difference between a void marriage and non-marriage | 82 | ||
| C. The difference between a void and a voidable marriage | 83 | ||
| D. The grounds on which a marriage is void | 84 | ||
| E. The grounds on which a marriage is voidable | 88 | ||
| F. Bars to relief in voidable marriages | 95 | ||
| G. Effects of a decree of nullity | 97 | ||
| H. Reform of nullity | 98 | ||
| I. Forced marriages | 98 | ||
| 7. Equal marriage | 102 | ||
| A. The debates over equal marriage | 102 | ||
| B. Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Act 2014 | 104 | ||
| 8. Marriage and the definition of sex | 105 | ||
| A. Transexual people | 105 | ||
| B. Intersex people | 108 | ||
| 9. Civil partnerships | 109 | ||
| A. Who can enter a civil partnership? | 109 | ||
| B. How do you form a civil partnership? | 112 | ||
| C. Annulling a civil partnership | 112 | ||
| D. The end of the civil partnership | 113 | ||
| E. The effect of a civil partnership | 113 | ||
| F. The differences between civil partnership and marriage | 113 | ||
| 10. Unmarried cohabiting couples | 114 | ||
| 11. Comparisons between the legal position of spouses or civil partners and unmarried couples | 116 | ||
| A. A Formalities at the beginning and end of a relationship | 116 | ||
| B. Financial support | 117 | ||
| C. Children | 118 | ||
| D. Inheritance and succession | 118 | ||
| E. Criminal law | 119 | ||
| F. Contract | 119 | ||
| G. Tort | 120 | ||
| H. Evidence | 120 | ||
| I. Matrimonial property | 121 | ||
| J. Marital confidences | 121 | ||
| K. Taxation and benefits | 121 | ||
| L. Citizenship | 121 | ||
| M. Statutory succession to tenancies | 122 | ||
| N. Domestic violence | 122 | ||
| O. Fatal Accident Act 1976 | 122 | ||
| P. The doctrine of unity | 122 | ||
| Q. Consortium | 123 | ||
| 12. Engagements | 123 | ||
| 13. Should the law treat cohabitation and marriage or civil partnership in the same way? | 124 | ||
| A. Does the state benefit from cohabitation to the same extent as from marriage or civil partnership? | 124 | ||
| B. Choice | 129 | ||
| C. Discrimination | 130 | ||
| D. Should marriage be discouraged? | 130 | ||
| E. Protection | 131 | ||
| 14. The Law Commission’s proposed reforms | 131 | ||
| 15. What if the state were to abolish legal marriage? | 132 | ||
| 16. Conclusion | 134 | ||
| Further reading | 135 | ||
| 4 Divorce | 137 | ||
| 1. Statistics on divorce | 137 | ||
| 2. Causes of divorce | 138 | ||
| 3. What should be the aims of divorce law? | 139 | ||
| A. Supporting the institution of marriage | 140 | ||
| B. Saving marriages | 141 | ||
| C. Limiting emotional harm | 141 | ||
| D. Promoting on-going relationships | 141 | ||
| E. Avoiding expense | 141 | ||
| F. Protection from violence | 142 | ||
| G. Dealing with emotional issues | 142 | ||
| 4. The present law on divorce: Matrimonial Causes Act 1973 | 142 | ||
| A. The background to the Matrimonial Causes Act 1973 | 142 | ||
| B. The current law: the Matrimonial Causes Act 1973 | 143 | ||
| 5. Problems with the present law | 151 | ||
| A. ‘It is confusing and misleading’ | 151 | ||
| B. ‘It is discriminatory and unjust’ | 151 | ||
| C. ‘It distorts the parties’ bargaining positions’ | 152 | ||
| D. ‘It provokes unnecessary hostility and bitterness’ | 152 | ||
| E. ‘It does nothing to save the marriage’ | 152 | ||
| F. ‘It can make things worse for the children’ | 153 | ||
| 6. Reforming the divorce law: the failure of the Family Law Act 1996 | 153 | ||
| A. A timetable for divorce procedures under the Family Law Act 1996 | 153 | ||
| B. The information meeting | 154 | ||
| C. Encouragement of reconciliation | 155 | ||
| D. The length of the process | 156 | ||
| E. Counselling and mediation | 156 | ||
| F. Divorce order to be granted only once the financial orders and arrangements for children are made | 156 | ||
| G. Protecting children’s interests during divorce | 157 | ||
| H. ‘Quickie divorce’ | 157 | ||
| I. Idealisation of divorce | 158 | ||
| 7. Reforming the divorce law: the Family Justice Review | 158 | ||
| 8. Proposed reform: No Fault Divorce Bill 2015 | 159 | ||
| 9. Some general issues on divorce | 159 | ||
| A. Individualisation of divorce | 160 | ||
| B. No-fault versus fault-based divorce | 160 | ||
| C. Length of time for the divorce process | 164 | ||
| D. Reconciliation and divorce | 164 | ||
| E. Religion and divorce | 165 | ||
| F. Children and divorce | 165 | ||
| 10. Separation orders | 166 | ||
| 11. Death and marriage | 166 | ||
| 12. Dissolving a civil partnership | 167 | ||
| 13. Conclusion | 168 | ||
| Further reading | 168 | ||
| 5 Family property | 170 | ||
| 1. Introduction | 170 | ||
| 2. The reality of family finances | 171 | ||
| 3. The ownership of family property: general theory | 172 | ||
| 4. The ownership of personal property | 174 | ||
| A. Jointly used bank accounts | 174 | ||
| B. Housekeeping and maintenance allowance | 175 | ||
| C. Gifts from one partner to the other | 175 | ||
| D. Gifts to partners from third parties | 175 | ||
| E. Improvements to personal property | 176 | ||
| F. Express declarations of trust | 176 | ||
| G. Criticisms of the present law | 176 | ||
| 5. Maintenance during marriage | 176 | ||
| A. Unmarried cohabitants | 176 | ||
| B. Married couples | 177 | ||
| 6. Ownership of real property: the family home: legal ownership | 178 | ||
| 7. Ownership of real property: the family home: equitable ownership | 179 | ||
| A. Express trusts | 179 | ||
| B. Resulting trusts | 180 | ||
| C. Constructive trusts | 180 | ||
| D. Proprietary estoppel | 188 | ||
| E. The interrelation of constructive trusts and proprietary estoppel | 190 | ||
| 8. Improvements to the home | 190 | ||
| 9. Criticism of the present law | 191 | ||
| 10. Reform of the law | 192 | ||
| 11. Rights to occupy the home | 196 | ||
| A. Contractual licences | 196 | ||
| B. Home rights | 196 | ||
| 12. The sale of a family home: enforcing trusts | 198 | ||
| 13. Conclusion | 199 | ||
| Further reading | 199 | ||
| 6 Property on separation | 201 | ||
| 1. Introduction | 201 | ||
| 2. Child support: theoretical issues | 202 | ||
| A. Does the obligation to support children fall on the state or on the parents? | 202 | ||
| B. Are the parents’ obligations independent or joint? | 204 | ||
| C. Biological or social parents? | 204 | ||
| D. What level should the support be? | 206 | ||
| E. Paternity fraud | 207 | ||
| F. ‘The lone-parent crisis’ | 207 | ||
| G. Child support and parental support | 208 | ||
| H. Should child support be a private issue? | 208 | ||
| 3. Financial support of children | 209 | ||
| A. Financial support of children living with both parents | 209 | ||
| B. The Child Maintenance and Other Payments Act 2008 | 209 | ||
| C. The encouragement to agree | 212 | ||
| D. The Children Act 1989 and child support | 214 | ||
| 4. Matrimonial Causes Act 1973 and children | 218 | ||
| A. Powers of the court on divorce or dissolution | 218 | ||
| B. ‘Child of the family’ | 218 | ||
| C. Applications by children | 218 | ||
| D. Factors to be taken into account | 219 | ||
| 5. Theoretical issues concerning financial support on divorce or dissolution | 219 | ||
| A. The economic realities of divorce | 220 | ||
| B. Why should there be any redistribution? | 221 | ||
| C. The case for the abolition of maintenance | 228 | ||
| D. Certainty or discretion? | 228 | ||
| E. The importance of discovery | 230 | ||
| 6. Orders that the court can make | 231 | ||
| A. Income orders | 232 | ||
| B. Property orders | 232 | ||
| C. Clean break orders | 233 | ||
| D. Interim orders | 238 | ||
| 7. Statutory factors to be taken into account when making orders | 238 | ||
| A. The welfare of children | 239 | ||
| B. Financial resources | 241 | ||
| C. The needs, obligations and responsibilities of the parties | 243 | ||
| D. ‘The standard of living enjoyed by the family before the breakdown of the marriage’ | 245 | ||
| E. ‘The age of each party to the marriage and the duration of the marriage’ | 245 | ||
| F. ‘Any physical or mental disability of either of the parties to the marriage’ | 246 | ||
| G. Contributions to the welfare of the family | 246 | ||
| H. Conduct | 247 | ||
| I. Loss of benefits | 249 | ||
| J. Other factors | 250 | ||
| 8. Principles developed by the courts | 250 | ||
| A. The principle of meeting needs | 250 | ||
| B. The principle of equality | 251 | ||
| C. The principle of compensation | 262 | ||
| D. The principle of autonomy | 263 | ||
| E. The role of the principles | 264 | ||
| 9. Particular issues relating to redistribution of property on divorce | 265 | ||
| A. The poor | 265 | ||
| B. Pensions | 266 | ||
| C. Housing | 270 | ||
| D. Pre-marriage or pre-nuptial contracts | 273 | ||
| E. Periodic payments | 280 | ||
| 10. A discussion of the approach taken to financial orders by the courts | 282 | ||
| 11. Consent orders | 283 | ||
| A. The status of agreement before a court order has been made | 283 | ||
| 12. Variation of, appeals against, and setting aside court orders | 284 | ||
| A. Variation | 285 | ||
| B. Setting aside a consent order | 288 | ||
| C. Appeal | 289 | ||
| 13. Reform of the law on financial support for spouses | 291 | ||
| 14. Conclusion | 295 | ||
| Further reading | 296 | ||
| 7 Domestic violence | 298 | ||
| 1. Introductory issues | 298 | ||
| A. Terminology and definitions | 298 | ||
| B. Domestic violence and gender | 302 | ||
| C. The incidence of domestic violence | 303 | ||
| D. Causes of domestic violence | 305 | ||
| E. The development of the law on domestic violence | 306 | ||
| 2. Injunctions and orders under the Family Law Act 1996 | 307 | ||
| A. The non-molestation order | 307 | ||
| B. Occupation orders | 313 | ||
| C. Ex parte non-molestation and occupation orders under the Family Law Act 1996 | 328 | ||
| D. Undertakings | 329 | ||
| E. The reduction in the use of civil remedies | 330 | ||
| 3. Domestic Violence Protection Notices and Orders | 330 | ||
| 4. Injunctions under the Protection from Harassment Act 1997 and tort | 332 | ||
| 5. Protection under the Mental Capacity Act and inherent jurisdiction | 334 | ||
| 6. The Children Act 1989 and domestic violence | 335 | ||
| 7. Domestic violence and the criminal law | 335 | ||
| A. The substantive law | 335 | ||
| B. The new domestic violence offence | 337 | ||
| C. The criminal law in practice | 339 | ||
| D. Reforming the criminal procedure | 342 | ||
| 8. Children abusing their parents | 344 | ||
| 9. Why the law finds domestic violence difficult | 345 | ||
| A. The traditional image of the family | 345 | ||
| B. Privacy | 345 | ||
| C. Difficulties of proof | 346 | ||
| D. Occupation or protection | 347 | ||
| E. Victim autonomy | 347 | ||
| F. Integrated approaches | 349 | ||
| G. The law is not appropriate | 349 | ||
| 10. Conclusion | 350 | ||
| Further reading | 350 | ||
| 8 Who is a parent? | 352 | ||
| 1. Introduction | 352 | ||
| 2. Psychological, sociological and biological notions of parenthood | 353 | ||
| A. Child psychologists | 353 | ||
| B. Sociologists | 354 | ||
| C. Biological perceptions | 354 | ||
| 3. The different meanings of being a parent in law | 354 | ||
| 4. Who is the child’s mother? | 356 | ||
| 5. Who is the child’s father? | 359 | ||
| A. Legal presumptions of paternity | 359 | ||
| B. Birth registration | 360 | ||
| C. Rebutting legal presumptions of paternity | 362 | ||
| D. Fathers and assisted reproduction | 363 | ||
| E. DIY assisted reproduction | 366 | ||
| F. An analysis of the allocation of parenthood in the HFE Acts | 366 | ||
| G. Surrogacy | 368 | ||
| 6. Adoption | 377 | ||
| 7. Losing parenthood | 377 | ||
| 8. Social parents | 377 | ||
| A. Guardianship | 377 | ||
| B. Foster parents | 380 | ||
| C. Special guardians | 381 | ||
| D. Those who treat a child as a child of the family | 381 | ||
| E. Step-parents | 383 | ||
| F. Others caring for the child | 383 | ||
| 9. Relatives | 384 | ||
| 10. The Human Rights Act 1998 and the right to respect for family life | 387 | ||
| A. What is family life? | 387 | ||
| B. What is respect? | 389 | ||
| C. When can infringement be justified? | 390 | ||
| 11. Who has parental responsibility? | 390 | ||
| A. Outline of the law | 390 | ||
| B. Consideration of the law in more detail | 391 | ||
| 12. Who should get parental responsibility? | 398 | ||
| A. Unmarried fathers | 398 | ||
| 13. Losing parental responsibility | 404 | ||
| 14. Wider issues over parenthood | 405 | ||
| A. What is the basis for granting parenthood? | 405 | ||
| B. Is there a right to know one’s genetic parentage? | 410 | ||
| C. Is there a right to be a parent? | 419 | ||
| D. ‘Illegitimacy’ | 424 | ||
| E. Same-sex couples and parenthood | 425 | ||
| 15. Conclusion | 430 | ||
| Further reading | 430 | ||
| 9 Parents’ and children’s rights | 432 | ||
| 1. Introduction | 432 | ||
| 2. When does childhood begin? | 433 | ||
| 3. When does childhood end? | 433 | ||
| 4. The nature of childhood | 434 | ||
| 5. Parents’ rights, responsibilities and discretion | 436 | ||
| A. Parental rights | 436 | ||
| B. Are parents’ rights and responsibilities linked? | 437 | ||
| C. Why do parents have rights and responsibilities? | 440 | ||
| 6. Parental responsibility | 443 | ||
| A. What is parental responsibility? | 443 | ||
| B. Parental responsibility in practice | 446 | ||
| C. The rights of a parent without responsibility | 448 | ||
| D. The extent of parental responsibility | 449 | ||
| 7. Sharing parental responsibility | 449 | ||
| A. Are all parental responsibilities equal? | 451 | ||
| B. Is the law in a sound state? | 452 | ||
| 8. The welfare principle | 455 | ||
| A. What does ‘welfare’ mean? | 455 | ||
| B. What does ‘paramount’ mean? | 456 | ||
| C. The nature of welfare | 457 | ||
| D. When does the welfare principle apply? | 459 | ||
| E. When does the welfare principle not apply? | 459 | ||
| F. What if the case involves two children – whose interests are paramount? | 462 | ||
| G. Conflict of interests between parents and children | 463 | ||
| 9. The Human Rights Act 1998 and children’s welfare and rights | 468 | ||
| A. Balancing the rights of parents and children under the Convention | 468 | ||
| B. Is there any practical difference between the approaches of the European Convention and the Children Act 1989? | 471 | ||
| 10. Criticisms of the welfare principle | 472 | ||
| 11. Alternatives to the welfare principle | 474 | ||
| 12. Children’s rights | 475 | ||
| A. Should children have all the rights adults have? | 476 | ||
| B. The argument against rights for children | 482 | ||
| C. Extra rights for children | 486 | ||
| D. Children’s rights for adults | 486 | ||
| E. Children’s rights in practice | 487 | ||
| F. Is there a difference between a welfare-based approach and a rights-based approach? | 488 | ||
| 13. Children and medical law | 490 | ||
| A. 16- and 17-year-olds | 490 | ||
| B. Under 16-year-olds | 491 | ||
| C. Comments on the law | 500 | ||
| 14. Children’s rights in other cases | 502 | ||
| 15. Children in court | 503 | ||
| A. Children bringing proceedings in their own right | 504 | ||
| B. Representation | 506 | ||
| 16. The Children’s Commissioner | 511 | ||
| 17. Corporal punishment | 512 | ||
| 18. Children’s duties | 515 | ||
| 19. Conclusion | 516 | ||
| Further reading | 517 | ||
| 10 Private disputes over children | 519 | ||
| 1. Introduction | 519 | ||
| 2. Negotiated settlements | 520 | ||
| 3. The orders available to the court | 520 | ||
| A. Child arrangements order | 521 | ||
| B. Specific issue orders | 523 | ||
| C. Prohibited steps order | 524 | ||
| D. Restrictions on the use of section 8 orders | 524 | ||
| E. Attaching conditions | 526 | ||
| 4. Who can apply for section 8 orders? | 528 | ||
| A. Persons who can apply without leave | 528 | ||
| B. People who need the leave of the court | 529 | ||
| C. How the court decides whether to grant leave | 529 | ||
| D. Restricting section 8 applications: section 91(14) | 530 | ||
| 5. Children’s welfare on divorce and relationship breakdown | 532 | ||
| 6. How the court obtains information on the child’s welfare | 534 | ||
| 7. How the court decides what is in the welfare of the child: the statutory checklist | 535 | ||
| A. The various factors | 536 | ||
| 8. Issues of controversy in applying the welfare principle | 545 | ||
| A. The use of presumptions | 545 | ||
| B. Shared residence | 546 | ||
| C. Is there a presumption in favour of mothers? | 548 | ||
| D. The ‘natural parent presumption’ | 549 | ||
| E. Is there a presumption that siblings should reside together? | 551 | ||
| F. Religion | 552 | ||
| G. Employed parents | 554 | ||
| H. Disabled parents | 555 | ||
| I. Names | 556 | ||
| J. Relocation | 561 | ||
| K. Internal relocation | 565 | ||
| L. When should there be contact between a child and parent? | 566 | ||
| 9. Wardship and the inherent jurisdiction | 598 | ||
| 10. Child abduction | 600 | ||
| 11. Conclusion | 601 | ||
| Further reading | 602 | ||
| 11 Child protection | 604 | ||
| 1. The problems of child protection | 604 | ||
| 2. The Children Act 1989 and child protection | 608 | ||
| 3. The Human Rights Act 1998 and child protection | 609 | ||
| 4. Defining and explaining abuse | 611 | ||
| 5. Voluntary services provided by local authorities | 612 | ||
| A. Voluntary accommodation | 613 | ||
| B. Services for children in need | 617 | ||
| C. The family assistance order | 619 | ||
| 6. Investigations by local authorities | 619 | ||
| A. Section 47 investigations | 620 | ||
| B. Section 37 directions | 621 | ||
| C. Child assessment orders | 622 | ||
| 7. Emergencies: criminal prosecutions and protection orders | 623 | ||
| A. Police protection | 623 | ||
| B. The emergency protection order | 624 | ||
| C. Secure accommodation orders | 627 | ||
| D. Exclusion orders | 628 | ||
| E. Wardship and the inherent jurisdiction | 629 | ||
| F. Local authorities and section 8 orders | 630 | ||
| G. The problem of ousting the abuser | 631 | ||
| H. Protection of children by the criminal law | 632 | ||
| 8. Compulsory orders: care orders and supervision orders | 633 | ||
| A. Who can apply? | 633 | ||
| B. Who can be the subject of care or supervision proceedings? | 633 | ||
| C. The effect of a care order | 634 | ||
| D. The effect and purpose of the supervision order | 635 | ||
| E. Care or supervision order? | 637 | ||
| F. Grounds for supervision and care orders: the threshold criteria | 638 | ||
| G. Grounds for supervision and care orders: the welfare test | 654 | ||
| H. Interim care orders | 655 | ||
| I. Procedural issues | 657 | ||
| 9. Special guardianship | 658 | ||
| A. Who can apply for a special guardianship? | 659 | ||
| B. The grounds for making a special guardianship order | 660 | ||
| C. The effect of special guardianship | 662 | ||
| D. Variation and discharge of special guardianship | 663 | ||
| E. An assessment of special guardianship | 663 | ||
| 10. Adoption | 665 | ||
| A. Adoption and secret birth | 668 | ||
| B. Who can adopt? | 669 | ||
| C. Who can be adopted? | 670 | ||
| D. The adoption procedures | 670 | ||
| E. Placement for adoption | 673 | ||
| F. Revocation of a placement order by court order | 674 | ||
| G. Revocation by the local authority | 675 | ||
| H. The making of an adoption order | 676 | ||
| I. The effect of an adoption order | 686 | ||
| J. Open adoption | 687 | ||
| K. Adoption by a parent | 689 | ||
| L. Adoption by parent and step-parent | 690 | ||
| M. Post-adoption support | 691 | ||
| N. Revocation of an adoption order | 692 | ||
| O. The breakdown of adoption | 694 | ||
| P. Access to birth and adoption register | 695 | ||
| Q. Inter-country adoption | 696 | ||
| 11. The position of children in care | 697 | ||
| A. Duties imposed upon a local authority | 698 | ||
| B. Empowering children in care | 702 | ||
| 12. Questioning local authority decisions about children in care | 702 | ||
| A. Internal complaints procedures | 702 | ||
| B. Human Rights Act 1998 | 703 | ||
| C. Judicial review | 703 | ||
| D. Secretary of State’s default powers | 704 | ||
| E. The local government ombudsman | 704 | ||
| F. Civil actions | 705 | ||
| G. Private orders | 706 | ||
| H. Inherent jurisdiction | 706 | ||
| 13. The balance of power between courts and local authorities | 707 | ||
| 14. Conclusion | 711 | ||
| Further reading | 712 | ||
| 12 Families and older people | 714 | ||
| 1. Introduction | 714 | ||
| 2. Statistics on older people | 715 | ||
| A. Number of older people | 715 | ||
| B. Older people and their families | 715 | ||
| C. Income | 716 | ||
| D. Age discrimination | 717 | ||
| 3. Do children have an obligation to support their parents? | 717 | ||
| A. Moral obligations or legal obligations? | 719 | ||
| B. What obligations do people actually feel? | 719 | ||
| C. Integrating family and state care | 720 | ||
| D. Conclusion | 720 | ||
| 4. Financial support for older people and their carers | 721 | ||
| 5. Inter-generational justice | 723 | ||
| 6. Incapable older people | 724 | ||
| A. Do older people have rights? | 724 | ||
| B. When does an older person lose capacity in the eyes of the law? | 725 | ||
| C. Advance decisions | 728 | ||
| D. Lasting powers of attorney | 729 | ||
| E. Deputies | 729 | ||
| F. Court decision based on best interests | 730 | ||
| G. The best interests of the person | 730 | ||
| 7. Succession and intestacy | 732 | ||
| A. Theory | 733 | ||
| B. The law in cases where there is a will | 734 | ||
| C. Intestacy | 734 | ||
| D. The Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 | 736 | ||
| 8. Elder abuse | 743 | ||
| A. Defining elder abuse | 743 | ||
| B. The law | 744 | ||
| C. Issues concerning elder abuse | 745 | ||
| 9. Conclusion | 746 | ||
| Further reading | 747 | ||
| Bibliography and further reading | 749 | ||
| Index | 801 | ||
| A | 801 | ||
| B | 802 | ||
| C | 803 | ||
| D | 808 | ||
| E | 809 | ||
| F | 810 | ||
| G | 811 | ||
| H | 811 | ||
| I | 812 | ||
| J | 812 | ||
| K | 813 | ||
| L | 813 | ||
| M | 813 | ||
| N | 814 | ||
| O | 815 | ||
| P | 816 | ||
| R | 819 | ||
| S | 820 | ||
| T | 822 | ||
| U | 823 | ||
| V | 823 | ||
| W | 823 |