Maura Hurley Solicitors is one of Dublin’s best know Child Care and Child Protection Solicitors based in the Ormond Building, 31-36 Ormond Quay Upper, Dublin 7

GUARDIANSHIP

A Legal Guardian is a person who has the legal authority to make decisions for and to properly care for the child/children and to perform duties regarding a child’s upbringing.

Married parents are automatic joint Guardians of the dependent  child/children.  However an unmarried father will automatically be a joint guardian if he has lived with the child’s mother for 12 consecutive months and including  at least three months with the mother and the child following the child’s birth.

An application can be made by the father to the family law courts for Joint Guardianship of the dependent  child/children.

A step-parent, or person who has co- habited with  the parent for  a minimum of three years, and has shared the responsibility for at least three years, may apply to court for Guardianship.

The Child Care Act provides that in any court proceedings concerning a child the Court must regard the welfare of the child as the principle guide in it’s decision making.

Depending on the age of the child, the Court will also have to have regard to the wishes of the child and the parents but the guiding principle is the welfare of the child.

The Child Care Act 1991 also sets out the role of the HSE in child care issues and under section 3 of Part III of the Act which places certain duties and obligations on the HSE in the whole area of child care. The HSE must also have regard to the wishes of the parents in carrying out it’s statutory duties.

High Court decisions have held that it is generally in the best interests of the child to be brought up in his own family so for this reason the intervention of the HSE to override the wishes of the parents has been limited to exceptional cases.

Contact Maura Hurley today on 086 778 7444 or email Maura using our Contact Form.