Focusing on moral, social and legal responsibilities as opposed to rights or obligations, this volume explores the concept of responsibility in family life, law and practice. Divided into four parts, the study considers the nature of family responsibility; constructions of children's responsibilities; shifting conceptions of family responsibilities; and family, responsibility and the law. The collection brings together leading experts from the disciplines of sociology, socio-legal studies and law to discuss responsibilities prior to birth, responsibilities for children, as well as responsibilities of children and of the state towards family members. The volume informs and challenges the developing conceptualization of responsibilities which arise in interdependent, intimate and caring relationships and their legal regulation. It will be of great interest to researchers and practitioners working in this complex field.

This volume provides a series of critical analyses of some of the contemporary debates in relation to the human rights of children, resituating them within visions which informed the text of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child in 1989. The studies embrace examination of some of today's widespread interpretations of the CRC, analysis of what is implied by a human rights-based approach in research and advocacy and consideration of advances and barriers to research and to several aspects of CRC implementation. With contributions by leading experts in the field, the book examines the CRC as an international instrument, its inherent dilemmas and some of the debates generated by the challenges of implementation. It embraces examinations of different levels of governance from the international to the state party, regional and local levels, including institutional developments and changes in law, policy and practice. The book will be a valuable resource for students, researchers and policy-makers working in the area of children's rights and welfare.

Did she choose that?' Or, more normatively, 'Why would she choose that?' This book critiques and offers an alternative to these questions, which have traditionally framed law and policy discussions circulating around controversial genderized practices. It examines the simplicity and incompleteness of choice-based rhetoric and of presumptions that women's conduct is shaped, in an absolute way, either by choice or by coercion. This book develops an analytical framework that aims to discern the meaning and value that women may ascribe to morally ambiguous practices. An analysis of law's approach to polygamy, surrogacy and sex work, particularly in Canada, the United Kingdom and Australia, provides a basis for evaluating the choice-coercion binary and for contemplating alternate modes for assessing, from a law and policy standpoint, the palatability of social practices that appear pernicious to women. Weaving together interdisciplinary research, an innovative analytical framework for assessing choices ostensibly harmful to women, and a critique of the legal rules governing such choices, this book bears relevance for students, scholars, practicing jurists and policymakers seeking a richer understanding of conduct that moves women to the margins of law and society.

Combining feminist legal theory with international human rights concepts, this book examines the presence, participation and treatment of children in a variety of contexts. Specifically, through comparing legal developments in the US with legal developments in countries where the views that children are separate from their families and potentially in need of state protection are more widely accepted. The authors address the role of religion in shaping attitudes about parental rights in the US, with particular emphasis upon the fundamentalist belief in natural lines of familial authority. Such beliefs have provoked powerful resistance in the US to human rights approaches that view the child as an independent rights holder and the state as obligated to proved services and protections that are distinctly child-centred. Calling for a rebalancing of relationships within the US family, to become more consistent with emerging human rights norms, this collection contains both theoretical debates about and practical approaches to granting positive rights to children.

Although the debate over same-sex marriage in the United States has ended, no one seems to know what lies on the horizon. The conversation about what marriage could be like in the future is no longer confined to academics. In his dissent in Obergefell, Chief Justice Roberts linked the constitutionally-mandated legal recognition of same-sex marriage to the possibility that states may also have to recognize multi-person intimate relationships as well to avoid discriminating against plural marriage enthusiasts. The popularity of television shows like TLC's Sister Wives and HBO's Big Love suggests that Americans no longer can be dismissive of the possibility that in the foreseeable future, marriage could, and perhaps should, look very different than it does today. Rather than settling the question of whether states ought to abolish marriage, make it more inclusive, contractual, or call it something else, this book exposes readers to some of the normative, legal, and empirical questions that Americans must address before they can deliberate thoughtfully about whether to keep the marital status quo where monogamy remains privileged. Unlike much of the debate over same-sex marriage, they exchange reasons with one another as they discuss marital reform. This book is for ordinary Americans, their elected representatives, and judges, to help them ultimately decide whether they want to continue to define marriage so narrowly, make it more inclusive to avoid discrimination, or have the state leave the marriage business. This edited, interdisciplinary volume contains eight original contributions, all of which illuminate important but often neglected areas of the topic.

This collection discusses how official legal systems do and should respond to the reality of a plurality of family types and origins within their jurisdictions. It further examines the challenges that arise for practitioners, including lawyers and judges, when faced with such plurality. Focussing on empirical research, the volume presents legal and sociological data of unprecedented comparative depth. It also includes a discussion of how members of minority families respond to the need to organise their legal relationships, and to resolve their disputes in the shadow of official legal systems which differ from those of their familial and communal traditions. The work invites reflection, and demonstrates the urgency and complexity of the questions regarding the search for justice in the field of family life in Europe today.

This important new text is the product of several years of research of the family law of fifteen Commonwealth Caribbean jurisdictions. It is the first and only legal text that comprehensively covers all the main substantive areas of spousal family law, including marriage, divorce, financial support, property rights and domestic violence. The rights of the statutory spouse in the jurisdictions of Barbados, Belize, Guyana, Jamaica, and Trinidad and Tobago are examined, thus addressing, on a jurisdictional basis, an important area of spousal family that is seldom covered in English family law texts. The book also covers the number and variations of divorce regimes applicable to the region - the matrimonial offence divorce model of Guyana and Montserrat, the English five fact model of Trinidad and Tobago, Dominica, Grenada, Anguilla, and St Vincent and the Grenadines, the hybrid model of Antigua and Barbuda, Belize and St Kitts and Nevis, and the no fault model of Jamaica and Barbados. This book will prove an indispensable resource for law students and legal academics, as well as for family law practitioners across the English-speaking Caribbean. Other professionals, including sociologists and social workers, will also find the book useful and informative.

This important new text is the product of several years of research of the family law of fifteen Commonwealth Caribbean jurisdictions. It is the first and only legal text that comprehensively covers all the main substantive areas of spousal family law, including marriage, divorce, financial support, property rights and domestic violence. The rights of the statutory spouse in the jurisdictions of Barbados, Belize, Guyana, Jamaica, and Trinidad and Tobago are examined, thus addressing, on a jurisdictional basis, an important area of spousal family that is seldom covered in English family law texts. The book also covers the number and variations of divorce regimes applicable to the region - the matrimonial offence divorce model of Guyana and Montserrat, the English five fact model of Trinidad and Tobago, Dominica, Grenada, Anguilla, and St Vincent and the Grenadines, the hybrid model of Antigua and Barbuda, Belize and St Kitts and Nevis, and the no fault model of Jamaica and Barbados. This book will prove an indispensable resource for law students and legal academics, as well as for family law practitioners across the English-speaking Caribbean. Other professionals, including sociologists and social workers, will also find the book useful and informative.

This volume identifies and elaborates on the significance and functions of the various actors involved in the development of family law in the Middle East. Besides the importance of family law regulations for each individual, family law has become the battleground of political and social contestation. Divided into four parts, the collection presents a general overview and analysis of the development of family law in the region and provides insights into the broader context of family law reform, before offering examples of legal development realised by codification drawn from a selection of Gulf states, Iran, and Egypt. It then goes on to present a thorough analysis of the role of the judiciary in the process of lawmaking, before discussing ways the parties themselves may have shaped and do shape the law. Including contributions from leading authors of Middle Eastern law, this timely volume brings together many isolated aspects of legal development and offers a comprehensive picture on this topical subject. It will be of interest to scholars and academics of family law and religion.

Within the European Union there is considerable diversity in morally sensitive issues like legal recognition of same-sex relationships or reproductive matters, such as abortion, assisted human reproduction (AHR) and surrogacy. States generally expressly claim recognition of such diversity and it is explicitly respected at European level, even though the (implicit) influence of European law is increasingly visible in these areas.Cross-border movement within the EU adds a new dimension to this complex picture. It implies that States are increasingly confronted by (the consequences of) one another's regimes. For example, same-sex couples residing in one EU Member State claim recognition of their marriage concluded in another Member State, or women from Member States with restrictive abortion regimes resort to States with more liberal regimes. This research explores this cross-border dimension, identifies a number of pressing questions and provides insight into the interests that are at stake in such situations.This volume firstly investigates what if any standard-setting is in place in three national jurisdictions (Ireland, Germany and the Netherlands) as well as in the relevant European jurisdictions (EU law and the ECHR) in respect of reproductive matters and legal recognition of same-sex relationships, and how this has developed over time. This analysis inter alia provides insight into what considerations and interests play or have played a role in legislative debates and case-law, in what respects the regimes studied differ, and how European law has influenced national standard-setting. It furthermore provides the necessary basis for the subsequent analysis of how the relevant jurisdictions respond to cross-border movement in these areas and how they interact. While, for example, States sometimes appear to ward off cross-border movement in these areas to protect their national moral standards, in other situations they choose to or are obliged under European law to accommodate such mobility in order to protect the interests of vulnerable parties involved. This research thereby observes and clarifies the dynamics in decision-making regarding these issues, analysing and explaining how various areas and levels of law interact.

Same-Sex Marriage and Religious Liberty explores the religious freedom implications of defining marriage to include same-sex couples. It represents the only comprehensive, scholarly appraisal to date of the church-state conflicts virtually certain to arise from the legal recognition of same-sex marriage. It explores two principal questions. First, exactly what kind of religious freedom conflicts are likely to emerge if society embraces same-sex marriage? A redefinition of marriage would impact a host of laws where marital status affects legal rights-in housing, employment, health-care, education, public accommodations, and property, in addition to family law. These laws, in turn, regulate a host of religious institutions-schools, hospitals, and social service providers, to name a few-that often embrace a different definition of marriage. As a result, church-state conflicts will follow. This volume anticipates where and how these manifold disputes will arise. Second, how might these conflicts be resolved? If the disputes spark litigation under the Free Speech, Free Exercise, or Establishment Clauses of the First Amendment, who will prevail and why? When, if ever, should claims of religious liberty prevail over claims of sexual liberty? Drawing on experience in analogous areas of law, the volume explores whether it is possible to avoid these constitutional conflicts by statutory accommodation, or by separating religious marriage from civil marriage.

Children's access to justice has emerged as an important topic in the children's rights domain. While there has been increasing attention paid to child-friendly justice internationally, there has been relatively little research in this area. This book, with contributions from researchers and practitioners, explores the meaning, practice and challenges of children's access to justice and contributes to a deeper understanding of what access to justice means to children, how they experience it and what it should look like in practice. It seeks to define access to justice in a global way, by addressing current challenges, asking new questions and providing answers to existing problems. One of the main areas of focus is children's participation in legal proceedings, which critically explores how children are heard in family law, criminal law and child protection procedures. Special challenges faced by groups of children, such as indigenous children, are brought to light. The roles of different actors in justice, including judges and lawyers, but also institutions such as independent child commissioners and schools, and how they can improve children's access to justice are explored. The book also highlights structural obstacles to children's participation that can be explained by country-specific situations and the attitudes of adults towards children. Many of the contributions are based on empirical research, bringing forth the voices of actors of justice and children themselves. While many of these contributions are county-specific, the book clearly demonstrates how challenges to children's access to justice are universal in nature.

This text presents an overview of the major issues and topics in current developments in Indian family law. Indian law has produced a number of very important innovations in the past two decades, which are also highly instructive for law reform debates in western and other jurisdictions. Topics discussed are: marriage, divorce, polygamy, maintenance, property and the Uniform Civil Code.

Groups seeking legal equality often take a victory as the end of the line. Once judgment is granted or a law is passed, coalitions disband and life goes on in a new state of equality. Policy makers too may assume that a troublesome file is now closed. This collection arises from the urgent sense that law reforms driven by equality call for fresh lines of inquiry. In unintended ways, reforms may harm their intended beneficiaries. They may also worsen the disadvantage of other groups. Committed to tackling these important issues beyond the boundaries that often confine legal scholarship, this book pursues an interdisciplinary consideration of efforts to advance equality, as it explores the developments, challenges, and consequences that arise from law reforms aiming to deliver equality in the areas of sexuality, kinship, and family relations. With an international array of contributors, After Legal Equality: Family, Sex, Kinship will be an invaluable resource for those with interests in this area.

Advances in the field of Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART) have been revolutionary. This book focuses on the use of ARTs in the context of families who seek to conceive a matching sibling donor as a source of tissue to treat an existing sick child. Such children have been referred to as 'saviour siblings'. Considering the legal and regulatory frameworks that impact on the accessibility of this technology in Australia and the UK, the work analyses the ethical and moral issues that arise from the use of the technology for this specific purpose. The author claims the only justification for limiting a family's reproductive liberty in this context is where the exercise of reproductive decision-making results in harm to others. It is argued that the harm principle is the underlying feature of legislative action in Western democratic society, and as such, this principle provides the grounds upon which a strong and persuasive argument is made for a less-restrictive regulatory approach in the context of 'saviour siblings'. The book will be of great relevance and interest to academics, researchers, practitioners and policy makers in the fields of law, ethics, philosophy, science and medicine.

International child abduction occurs when one parent wrongfully (i.e. in breach of the parental responsibility of the other parent) takes a child to a country other than that of the child's habitual residence, or wrongfully keeps a child in such a country. The author of this work was part of a research team that conducted a study, partially funded by the European Commission, to examine this problem in Belgium and Hungary, analyzing cases from 2007 and 2008 and interviewing the affected parents. This book is a revised version of the Belgian research report, which sets the problem of child abduction within its international context. It looks at the families in which abductions took place, how preparations were made for an abduction, the quest for the return of the child (including legal proceedings), and the aftermath of the abductions. Throughout the book, the results of the quantitative and qualitative data are explained. What emerges is that when a child is abducted, the solutions offered by the law are often inadequate. Family conflict is a complex societal issue, and child abduction is a severe form of family conflict. Rather than responding to child abduction with strict and contentious legal proceedings, the book argues that solutions based on respect, psychological assistance, and a search for consensus should be favored. (Series: Studies in Private International Law)

This volume is a collection of articles by scholars across disciplines to create a discourse of family law independent of Religious Personal Law, whilst striving for fairness and justice to all. It demonstrates the artificiality of the public-private divide and seeks the systematic development of ideas for a fair and just family law in contemporary India. The book does not merely document the pathologies of power within the family but also makes proposals for remedying these inequities. It is not confined to considering what changes need to be inducted into existing family law to make it more just, but also strategises on the means and methods of effecting the change. It lifts the familial veil and scrutinises the status, rights and disabilities of some of the subordinated members of the family. The volume is an invitation to redefine family law with the twin tools of reflection and responsibility. It will interest those in law judges, legislators, law reformers as well as those in women and family studies, policy makers and policy analysts, apart from the general reader.

While in the past family life was characterised as a "haven from the harsh realities of life", it is now recognised as a site of vulnerabilities and a place where care work can go unacknowledged and be a source of social and economic hardship. This book addresses the strong relationships that exist between vulnerability and care and dependency in particular contexts, where family law and social policy have a contribution to make. A fundamental premise of this collection is that vulnerability needs to be analysed in a way that gets at the heart of the differential power relationships that exist in society, particularly in respect of access to family justice, including effective social policy and law targeted at the specific needs of families in mutually dependent caring relationships. It is therefore crucial to critically examine the various approaches taken by policy makers and law reformers in order to understand the range of ways that some families, and some family members, may be rendered more vulnerable than others. The first book of its kind to provide an intersectional approach to this subject, Vulnerabilities, Care and Family Law will be of interest to students and practitioners of social policy and family law.

The Civil Partnership Act 2004 and the Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Act 2013 are important legal, social and historical landmarks, rich in symbolic, material and cultural meanings. While fiercely opposed by many, within mainstream narratives they are often represented as a victory in a legal reform process that commenced with the decriminalisation of homosexuality. Yet, at the same time, for others they represent a problematic and ambivalent political engagement with the institution of marriage. Consequently, understood or labelled as 'revolutionary', 'progressive' and 'conservative', these legal reforms provide a space for thinking about issues that arguably affect everyone, regardless of sexual orientation or relationship status. This edited collection brings together scholars and commentators from a range of backgrounds, generations and disciplines to reflect on the first ten years of civil partnerships and the introduction of same-sex marriage. Rather than rehearsing the arguments 'for' and 'against' relationship recognition, the essays ask original questions, draw on a variety of methods and collectively provide a detailed and reflective 'snap shot' of a critical moment, a 'history of the present' as well as providing a foundation for innovative ways of thinking about and engaging with the possibilities and experiences arising from the new reality of relationship recognition for gays and lesbians.

Family Law provides a comprehensive foundation in the key topics covered by courses. It explains the basic principles of the law and practice in their social, economic and historic context, enabling the reader to understand the doctrinal and practical impact of current radical changes in family law in response to cultural and other influences. This second edition has been fully updated in the light of on-going changes to the family justice system including: the modernisation of family justice including the new Family Court Atypical formation of the contemporary family: genetic, adoptive, social or through HAR the proposed administrative extra-judicial divorce process financial orders on married and unmarried family relationship breakdown enhanced parental responsibility, 'Parental Agreements' and 'Child Arrangement Orders' the treatment of post separation parenting (and the new DWP child support system) reforms to public child law, including changes to adoption same-sex marriage and the impact on traditional marriage and cohabitation Visit the companion website for practice questions, updates to the law and podcasts by the author at http://www.routledge.com/cw/burton-9780415583640

First published in 2002. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.

This is the authoritative textbook on family mediation. As well as mediators, this work will be indispensable for practitioners and scholars across a wide range of fields, including social work and law. It draws on a wide cross-disciplinary theoretical literature and on the author's extensive and continuing practice experience. It encompasses developments in policy, research and practice in the UK and beyond. Roberts presents mediation as an aid to joint decision-making in the context of a range of family disputes, notably those involving children. Mediation is seen as a process of intervention distinct from legal, social work and therapeutic practice, drawing on a distinctive body of knowledge across disciplinary fields including anthropology, psychology and negotiation theory. Incorporating empirical evidence, the book emphasises the value of mediation in mitigating the harmful effects of family breakdown and conflict. First published in 1988 as a pioneering work, this fourth edition has been fully updated to incorporate legal and policy developments in the UK and in Europe, new sociological and philosophical perspectives on respect, justice and conflict, and international research and practice innovations.

Published in 1999. Despite considerable comment about divorce reform and the post-divorce family, in the press and in academia, by professionals and politicians, much has been left unsaid. There are 'undercurrents' of divorce which are not visible and are not discussed because they do not fit into the dominant discursive framework for talk about divorce. This book brings these undercurrents to the surface and does two things. It explains how and why aspects of divorce and the lives of those divorcing, have become marginalized in professional and political discussion and it makes visible the practical and legal effects of such exclusion. It argues that there are good policy reasons for this particular socio-legal critique at this time, as the implementation of the Family Law Act 1996 gets underway.

Clear, straightforward explanations and easy-to-follow examples ensure students' understanding of what is often considered a complex and difficult subject. Lively, humorous writing style and focus on real people and real situations help to bring equity and trusts to life, challenging preconceptions and engaging even the most resistant of students Focus on areas of contemporary interest and rapid recent development such as the family home; charities law and commercial uses of trusts to help students to see how the law impacts on individuals and businesses every day. Shorter, punchier and more accessible to a broader range of students than Alastair Hudson's classic textbook, this is sure to appeal to today's time-pressured law student. New edition updated to include the latest developments in case law.

Economists have studied numerous fields of law for many years, but family law was virtually neglected until the early 1970s. It was only relatively recently that economic insights about the family crept into the consciousness of those involved in legal research. The articles within this book explore a range of family law issues and include discussions on a variety of topics including cohabitation, births outside marriage, courtship, premarital contracting, marriage and parenting. The volume includes papers on the division of responsibilities between family and state, the effects of no-fault divorce, alimony, property division and child custody. There are also works on intergenerational transfers and the elderly. The collection contains articles written by leading authorities in the field and provides a stimulating exploration of the subject of family law and economics. The book will be accessible to a wide audience, including students of law and economics, as well as both academic and practising lawyers. The questions posed in this volume are worthy of consideration by the next generation of academics.