The South African Law of Persons provides law students with a thorough understanding of the principles of the law of persons.

In a concise and comprehensive manner, the publication includes discussion of the implications of the constitutional principles of the law of persons.

Family Law in South Africa, second edition, offers a clear and accessible introduction to the principles of family law in South Africa. The second edition is thoroughly updated and revised to reflect developments within the recent period, and includes a new chapter relating to surrogacy, IVF, and other forms of non-natural reproduction.

This revised edition introduces a more integral and expanded synthesis of common law and African customary law, throughout, and includes a new chapter that discusses customary law rights, responsibilities and ritual pertaining to children.

Where relevant, aspects of legal ethics, social justice, problem solving, and comparative law are foregrounded, at the appropriate level, and critical, reflective and skills-based development is supported by the text’s unique pedagogical design.

The emergence of Shaken Baby Syndrome (SBS) presents an object lesson in the dangers that lie at the intersection of science and criminal law. As often occurs in the context of scientific knowledge, understandings of SBS have evolved. We now know that the diagnostic triad alone does not prove beyond a reasonable doubt that an infant was abused, or that the last person with the baby was responsible for the babys condition. Nevertheless, our legal system has failed to absorb this new consensus. As a result, innocent parents and caregivers remain incarcerated and, perhaps more perplexingly, triad-only prosecutions continue even to this day. Flawed Convictions: Shaken Baby Syndrome and the Inertia of Injustice is the first book to survey the scientific, cultural, and legal history of Shaken Baby Syndrome from inception to formal dissolution. It exposes extraordinary failings in the criminal justice systems treatment of what is, in essence, a medical diagnosis of murder. The story of SBS highlights fundamental inadequacies in the legal response to science dependent prosecution. A proposed restructuring of the law contends with the uncertainty of scientific knowledge.

Over the past four decades, the American family has undergone a radical transformation. Skyrocketing rates of divorce, single parenthood, and couples with children out of wedlock have all worked to undermine an idealized family model that took root in the 1950s and has served as a beacon for traditionalists ever since. But what are the causes of this change? Conservatives blame it on moral decline and women's liberation. Progressives often attribute it to women's greater freedom and changing sexual mores, but they typically paint these trends in a positive light. In Family Classes, Naomi Cahn and June Carbone contend that these views miss the forest for the trees. Armed with authoritative evidence, they show that the changing structure of our economy is the root cause of the transformation, and that working class and poorer families have paid the highest price. Increasing inequality and instability in the labor market over the past three decades has had a disproportionately negative impact on family stability and marriage rates among working-class and lower-income Americans. In particular, the decline of stable blue collar jobs for men has upended the labor market in the lower deciles of the income chart. Conversely, educated middle class Americans now have the highest rates of both marriage and marital stability despite the fact that they are relatively unlikely to espouse 'traditional values.' In fact, their family stability rate appears to be increasing. That is important because the children of stable two-parent families really do have a leg up in life. They draw from truly fascinating sociological data to drive home their point that economic factors weigh heaviest. For instance, when eligible (i.e., desirable and marriageable) men outnumber eligible women, the marriage and marital stability rates are significantly higher than when the reverse situation occurs - the exact situation we have in America today. Among the educated middle classes, eligible men outnumber eligible women in the area that truly matters-high incomes-and people in that strata therefore have far more stable family lives than working class and poorer Americans. In these latter sectors, men have lost economic ground vis-a-vis women, and family lives have become increasingly unstable in the last two decades. Interestingly, religion and moral values are insignificant factors in generating this difference in comparison to class. To make families stronger, then, we need to increase the level of economic stability in the bottom half of the population. The authors close with a series of policy proposals to address the family-related problems that flow from economic instability. A rigorous and enlightening account of why American families have changed so much since the 1960s, Family Classes cuts through the ideological and moralistic rhetoric that drives our current debate.

A long-awaited history that promises to dramatically change our understanding of race in America, What Comes Naturally traces the origins, spread, and demise of miscegenation laws in the United States - laws that banned interracial marriage and sex, most often between whites and members of other races. Peggy Pascoe demonstrates how these laws were enacted and applied not just in the South but throughout most of the country, in the West, the North, and the Midwest. Beginning in the Reconstruction era, when the term miscegenation first was coined, she traces the creation of a racial hierarchy that bolstered white supremacy and banned the marriage of Whites to Chinese, Japanese, Filipinos, and American Indians as well as the marriage of Whites to Blacks. She ends not simply with the landmark 1967 case of Loving v. Virginia, in which the Supreme Court finally struck down miscegenation laws throughout the country, but looks at the implications of ideas of colorblindness that replaced them. What Comes Naturally is both accessible to the general reader and informative to the specialist, a rare feat for an original work of history based on archival research.

There has been much discussion worldwide on parenting after parental separation, especially on the desirability for the children involved of equally shared care (co-parenting) and the feasibility of legal arrangements in which the children alternate their residence between their parents' houses (residential co-parenting). Much is unclear about how residential co-parenting affects children and therefore how the legislator and practitioners should deal with this arrangement.Divided Parents, Shared Children seeks to answer three questions to further understand the phenomenon of co-parenting and to provide the legislator, the courts and parents with possible solutions: What kind of legal framework exists in England and Wales, the Netherlands and Belgium with regard to (residential) co-parenting and what can these countries learn from each other's legal systems? Does residential co-parenting occur in the countries discussed, and if so how predominant is it? Should these jurisdictions encourage or discourage residential co-parenting through legal action? To answer these questions, this book uses not only legal data, from both empirical and literature research, but also sociological, psychological and demographic studies into residential arrangements and their effect on children.

Children's rights and human development is a new and uncharted domain in human rights and psychology research. This multidisciplinary children's rights reader is a first attempt to introduce this domain to students and researchers of children's rights, child development, child maltreatment, family and child studies, and related fields. For many lawyers, children's rights are limited to their legal dimension: the norms and institutions of international human rights law, often with an exclusive focus on the Convention on the Rights of the Child and its monitoring treaty body, the Committee on the Rights of the Child. However, there are three more dimensions to children's rights. Children's rights share a moral and a political dimension with all human rights, which most non-international lawyers all too often overlook. And children's rights have a fourth dimension: the time dimension of child and human development. This time dimension is multidisciplinary in itself. Human development begins nine months before childbirth. When we are four years of age, our brain is 90% adult size. The infrastructure of our personality, health, and resilience is formed in our first years of life, determined by the quality and sheer quantity of parent-child interaction and secure attachment formation. Yet, more than one third of children are not securely attached. According to research published in The Lancet in 2009, one in ten children in high income countries is maltreated. Violence against children is a worldwide plague. Socio-economic and socio-emotional deprivation are still transmitted from generation to generation in both rich and poor states. Investing in early childhood development, positive parenting, and child rights education makes sense. This book brings together substantial and fascinating texts from many fields and disciplines that illustrate and elaborate this point. Arranged in ten chapters titled according to pertinent child rights principles and concepts, these texts offer a state-of-the-art view of the enormous progress made in the past decades in several fields of human knowledge. In between these texts, several news and factual items inform the reader on the huge gap that still exists between what we know and what we do to make this world a better place for children, to promote human development, and to protect human rights better. Child rights violations are still met with more rhetoric than leadership. But change is on its way. The book's contents may be used both as background readings and as tasks for group discussion in problem-based learning or other educational settings in child rights law and psychology courses. It is also aimed at a broader academic and public audience interested in the many aspects and ramifications of children's rights and human development.

Three years after its establishment the CEFL presents its first Principles of European Family Law in the field of divorce and maintenance between former spouses. The Principles aim to bestow the most suitable means for the harmonisation of family laws in Europe. In this respect they may serve as a frame of reference for national, European and international legislatures alike. The Principles could considerably facilitate their task not only by virtue of the fact that the CEFL's in-depth and comprehensive comparative research is easily accesible but also because most of the rules have been drafted in a way legislatures normally consider to be appropriate.

Elgar Advanced Introductions are stimulating and thoughtful introductions to major fields in the social sciences, business and law, expertly written by the world's leading scholars. Designed to be accessible yet rigorous, they offer concise and lucid surveys of the substantive and policy issues associated with discrete subject areas. This Advanced Introduction offers a succinct yet comprehensive introduction to the multidisciplinary field of children's rights. Inspired by the dilemma of difference in the discussion of children's rights, chapters explore the equal rights that children share with adults as well as their differentiated and special rights. Key Features: Accessible, conceptually-grounded exploration of the contemporary children's rights debates Inclusive and multifaceted overview of children's rights within the human rights paradigm Forward looking perspectives and discussion of the future of children's rights Approaching the topic of children's rights firmly within the human rights paradigm, this Advanced Introduction will be a valuable companion for students and academics interested in children's rights, human rights and international law. Legal scholars and policy-makers looking to gain insight into key areas in children's rights will also find this book an interesting read.

This authoritative Commentary on the recast Regulation 2019/1111 on matters of matrimonial and parental responsibility presents a deep analysis of the Regulation and is authored by leading experts in family law and private international law. Employing a granular, article-by-article approach, the Commentary acts as a detailed reference point on the uniform jurisdiction rules for divorce, legal separation and marriage annulment, as well as for disputes over parental responsibility with an international element, including child abduction. It provides clear guidance on and interpretation of the jurisdictional rules on collaboration of authorities and on the recognition and execution of judicial verdicts. Key Features: Provides comprehensive article-by-article analysis Written by leading experts Explains the mechanics of Regulation 2019/1111 to practitioners and legal scholars alike Includes expansive reference to case-law and legal writings, and explains the relation with other EU regulations This meticulous and ambitious Commentary will be an indispensable companion for those involved in and practising family law, particularly in cases with a cross-border element, including judges, lawyers and child protection authorities. It will additionally be valuable for scholars of European family law and private international law.

With significant changes to public funding and the rise of litigants in person, many practitioners are looking to provide services on a 'pay as you go' or 'fixed fee' basis for discrete or separate pieces of work. 'Unbundling' is an approach whereby the solicitor and client agree which parts of the process the client can undertake without assistance, and which parts they will require some input from a solicitor. This approach is growing in the area of family law. This toolkit provides a suite of tools to assist family solicitors considering unbundling work and new methods of pricing while pointing out the potential risks and how to minimize them. Practical and concise, it contains useful templates and checklists for solicitors wishing to offer unbundled services as a more affordable alternative to the traditional retainer and hourly rates pricing strategy.

This authoritative set of best practice guidelines has been comprehensively updated to cover all the changes since 2010 and includes two new chapters on forced marriage and alternative pathways to parenthood. Endorsed by the President of the Family Division, the Protocol is the standard by which members of the Law Society and Resolution are judged.The fourth edition of this indispensible book takes account of significant developments including:* changes to public funding in family law proceedings* private family law arrangements for children and parental involvement* new legislation on honour-based violence and forced marriage* alternative pathways to parenthood including adoption and surrogacy.Developed by the Law Society in association with Resolution and other leading organisations, interest groups and figures in the field, this is the go-to text for family law practitioners.

What happens when the very same system designed to protect children fails? That's exactly what is happening right now in the UK family courts in cases of Parental Alienation, a form of post-divorce abuse. Cafcass define Parental Alienation as 'when a child's resistance or hostility towards one parent is not justified and is the result of psychological manipulation by the other parent'; yet experts, therapists and social workers are not trained to assess or deal with cases involving Parental Alienation. I spent years making my case to judges, experts and lawyers, all of whom failed to agree on what was actually happening between my ex-wife, my kids and myself. At the time it seemed like I was constantly trying to prove a negative, to find a new direction to reach my kids, and while all were promising, all ended in expensive dead ends as my ex-wife pursued her agenda. If I had to sum up the experience of trying to prove Parental Alienation in the courts, I would describe it as being trapped in the backseat of a car while it crashes in slow motion. The system is not fit for purpose. The family courts are slow and busy, burdened by the backlog of cases. Once you do get a hearing, they are often set months away and even then, traditional safeguarding assessments fail to detect Parental Alienation. The longer the child is away from a parent, the harder it is to stop the alienation, and the longer the issue remains unaddressed, the risk of the children suffering mental health and behavioural problems increases. Alienated parents also often display signs of post-traumatic stress: paranoia, anxiety and in some cases are suicidal. It is my hope that this book will not only draw attention to the potential injustice in cases of Parental Alienation and the need for meaningful reform to prevent further irreparable damage, but that it will help a parent going through a family separation spot signs before it's too late. About the author: The author is a successful businessman, loving father and victim of parental alienation. The author has used a ghost writer to validate his story. The characters have been anonymised to both protect their privacy and lift the veil on the inner workings of the family court, which the author believes is in the public interest of protecting children from harm.

Elgar Advanced Introductions are stimulating and thoughtful introductions to major fields in the social sciences, business and law, expertly written by the world's leading scholars. Designed to be accessible yet rigorous, they offer concise and lucid surveys of the substantive and policy issues associated with discrete subject areas. This Advanced Introduction offers a succinct yet comprehensive introduction to the multidisciplinary field of children's rights. Inspired by the dilemma of difference in the discussion of children's rights, chapters explore the equal rights that children share with adults as well as their differentiated and special rights. Key Features: Accessible, conceptually-grounded exploration of the contemporary children's rights debates Inclusive and multifaceted overview of children's rights within the human rights paradigm Forward looking perspectives and discussion of the future of children's rights Approaching the topic of children's rights firmly within the human rights paradigm, this Advanced Introduction will be a valuable companion for students and academics interested in children's rights, human rights and international law. Legal scholars and policy-makers looking to gain insight into key areas in children's rights will also find this book an interesting read.

Since the end of the Second World War, increasing numbers of women have decided to become mothers without intending the biological father or a partner to participate in parenting. Many conceive via donor insemination or adopt; others become pregnant after a brief sexual relationship and decide to parent alone. Using a feminist socio-legal framework, Autonomous Motherhood? probes fundamental assumptions within the law about the nature of family and parenting. Drawing on a range of empirical evidence, including legislative history, case studies, and interviews with single mothers, the authors conclude that while women may now have the economic and social freedom to parent alone, they must still negotiate a socio-legal framework that suggests their choice goes against the interests of society, fatherhood, and children.

Unrecognized in the United States and resisted in many wealthy, industrialized nations, children's rights to participation and self-determination are easily disregarded in the name of protection. In literature, the needs of children are often obscured by protectionist narratives, which redirect attention to parents by mythologizing the supposed innocence, victimization, and vulnerability of children rather than potential agency. In Perils of Protection: Shipwrecks, Orphans, and Children's Rights, author Susan Honeyman traces how the best of intentions to protect children can nonetheless hurt them when leaving them unprepared to act on their own behalf. Honeyman utilizes literary parallels and discursive analysis to highlight the unchecked protectionism that has left minors increasingly isolated in dwindling social units and vulnerable to multiple injustices made possible by eroded or unrecognized participatory rights. Each chapter centers on a perilous pattern in a different context: ""women and children first"" rescue hierarchies, geographic restriction, abandonment, censorship, and illness. Analysis from adventures real and fictionalized will offer the reader high jinx and heroism at sea, the rush of risk, finding new families, resisting censorship through discovering shared political identity, and breaking the pretenses of sentimentality.

What does conservatism, as a body of political thought, say about the legal regulation of intimate relationships, and to what extent has this thought influenced the Conservative Party's approach to family law? With this question as its focus, this book explores the relationship between family law, conservatism and the Conservative Party since the 1980s. Taking a politico- and socio-legal perspective, the discussion draws on an expansive reading of Hansard as well as recently released archival material. The study first sets out the political tradition of conservatism, relying largely on the work of Edmund Burke, before going on to analyse the discourse around the development of four crucial statutes in the field, namely: the Matrimonial and Family Proceedings Act 1984; the Family Law Act 1996; the Civil Partnership Act 2004; and the Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Act 2013. This work offers the first extended synthesis of family law, conservative political thought and Conservative Party politics, and as such provides significant new insight into how family law is made. Runner up of the 2020 PSA Conservatism Studies Book Prize.

THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER 'Helen is the woman I want in my life when the shit hits the fan' - Bryony Gordon What do you do when your relationship suddenly ends? How do you cope when the cosy 'coupley' future you had planned disappears? Join comedian Helen Thorn from The Scummy Mummies as she haphazardly takes the plunge into single life for the first time in twenty-two years. Helen shares her own roller coaster journey from the initial shock of a surprise separation, the messy months hanging out in her PJs through to the highs of rediscovering online dating, tiny pants, rock-solid female friendships and the glorious joy of just being by herself. With the help of relationship experts and an army of women "who know", Get Divorced, Be Happy will show you that going it alone isn't the end, it is just the beginning, and you will come out the other side, stronger, happier and goddamn sassier than ever before.