CHILDREN AFFECTED BY DIVORCE
CHILDREN AFFECTED BY DIVORCE &
PROTECTING THEIR BEST INTERESTS
On the 11th of June, 1996, the Family Law Reform Act 1995 came into effect amending certain sections of the Family Law Act 1975, in particular, those relating to the care of children involved in divorce situations. The object of these amendments, according to the new act, was to ensure two things. Firstly, “that the children may receive adequate and proper parenting to help them achieve their full potential,” and secondly, “to ensure that parents fulfil their duties, and meet their responsibilities, concerning the care, welfare and development of their children.” These recent amendments are clearly a positive step ...
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are protected, the courts aim is to ensure that parental responsibility survives any changes in the nature of the child’s parent’s relationship. Parental responsibility relates to “all the duties, powers, responsibilities and authority which, by law, parents have in relation to children.” When deciding a case involving a child in the event of a separation between the child’s parents, the child’s best interests are now the court’s paramount consideration. The concepts access, custody, and guardianship have been replaced in the amendments by contact, residence, and joint parental responsibility.
Between 1987 and 1997, the annual number of divorces rose from 39,700 to 51,300. As a result of this increase, one fifth of all Australian children aged one to seventeen now live in single parent households. Of these children living with only one natural parent, 88% live with their mothers with the remaining 12% living with their fathers. This ratio of which parents children resided with ...
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is the child’s best interests, therefore their final decision regarding which parent will receive residence is determined by where conditions are best for the child. If the parents of the child are unable to come to an agreement by themselves and fail to do so via mediation, then they may decide to take their dispute to court. If the latter results, then in deciding what is best for the child, the court takes into consideration all or most of the following factors - the expressed wishes of the child, the child’s relationship with each of the parents, the effects of changes in the child’s lifestyle, the capacity of each parent, the child’s maturity, sex, and background, the need to ...
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"CHILDREN AFFECTED BY DIVORCE." Essayworld.com. February 10, 2006. Accessed December 23, 2024. http://www.essayworld.com/essays/CHILDREN-AFFECTED-BY-DIVORCE/41028.
"CHILDREN AFFECTED BY DIVORCE." Essayworld.com. February 10, 2006. Accessed December 23, 2024. http://www.essayworld.com/essays/CHILDREN-AFFECTED-BY-DIVORCE/41028.
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