The notion that children constitute an important group of rights holders has gained increasing acceptance both domestically and internationally. Nevertheless, this rhetorical commitment to children's rights is not necessarily realised in practice. Now in its fourth edition, Fortin's Children's Rights and the Developing Law explores the extent to which law and policy in England promotes or undermines the rights of children. Fully revised and updated, this textbook uses current research on child development and welfare to reflect on the extent to which the law fulfils children's rights in a wide range of areas, including medical law, education and child poverty. These developments are measured again the domestic law and the UK's international obligations under, for example, the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child.

This text considers the developing law in England and Wales as it applies to the burgeoning and confusing subject of the rights of children. It examines the extent to which the emerging legal principles can be harnessed to fulfil those rights.

Rev. ed. of: Family law principles, policy, and practice. 2nd ed. c1999.

The child’s right to religious freedom in international law has never been considered in a comprehensive fashion, yet key issues include the prevention of indoctrination, religious clothing, the relationship of the child with parents and religious communities, and the duties of the state to the child. Building on a sociological analysis of religious children, a body of international legal materials is analysed against a theoretical model of what the child’s right ought to be. This book is the first attempt at analysing what international law says on the question, the result is a compelling analysis of the definitive position of international law on the child’s right to religious freedom.

Topical and compelling, this volume provides an excellent re-evaluation of the ‘best interests’ test in the healthcare arena; the ways in which it has developed, the inherent difficulties in its use and its interpretation in legal cases concerning the medical care of children. Comprehensively covering both the English and Scottish position within the context of the European Convention of human Rights and the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, the author examines a wide range of healthcare situations, from the commonly occurring to the unusual, offering a detailed analysis of legislation, case law, cases and their implications. It includes discussions on: the extent to which a child’s body can be examined, operated on and affected by medicines, devices or procedures intended to bring about medical change the appropriate scope of parental choice and authority and at what stage of their development children should be allowed to make their own decisions the response to situations where the interests of children may be in conflict – the cases of conjoined twins or the donation of organs to siblings. This work is a key resource for postgraduates and researchers working and studying in the fields of law, healthcare and medicine.

Current Legal Issues, like its sister volume Current Legal Problems (now available in journal format), is based upon an annual colloquium held at Univesity College London. Each year leading scholars from around the world gather to discuss the relationship between law and another discipline of thought. Each colloquium examines how the external discipline is conceived in legal thought and argument, how the law is pictured in that discipline, and analyses points of controversy in the use, and abuse, of extra-legal arguments within legal theory and practice. Law and Childhood Studies, the fourteenth volume in the Current Legal Issues series, offers an insight into the state of law and childhood studies scholarship today. Focussing on the inter-connections between the two disciplines, it addresses the key issues informing current debates.

This best-selling textbook is loved by students and lecturers alike. Offering exceptional coverage of all key family law principles, this book also explores the theories, debates and ethical dilemmas which underpin the subject ensuring you have the knowledge required to critique the existing law and evaluate reform options.

This volume highlights important classic and contemporary works by law and society scholars who analyze the complex and often highly political relationship between law and families. Featuring authors from Australia, Canada, England and the United States, the volume looks at how socio-legal scholars think about families and the law, how law shapes family practices, the capacity of family law to deliver social justice and how family disputes are resolved. Topics such as law's role in recognizing spousal and parental relationships or promoting responsible behaviour or equality norms are covered and the relationship between law's assumptions and the lived realities of families is problematized.

Children and Citizenship offers a contemporary and critical approach to the central debates around notions of children’s citizenship. Drawing on different disciplinary perspectives and including contributions by leading scholars in the field, this book makes explicit connections between theoretical approaches, representations of childhood, and the experiences of children themselves, legal instruments, policies, and their implementation. The book contains reflections on the notion of children’s citizenship in general as well as in relation to international instruments, in particular the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC), the case law of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), and EU legislation relating to citizenship and children’s rights.

"Dr. Kilkelly's newest book, Children's Rights in Ireland: Law, Policy, and Practice, is a most useful and significant legal treatise of interest not only in Ireland but to readers in all English speaking nations. This book provides a thorough review of the historical evolution of the rights of children, relevant theories, case law, legislation, and a review of the current and growing influence of international law in the realm of children's legal rights. Highly recommend for all person interested in the rights of children, and essential reading for legal scholars and practitioners working in this area of law". John Dayton, J.D., Ed. D., Professor and Co-Director, Education Law Consortium, University of Georgia. A unique legal analysis of child and family law from a children's rights perspective. This completely unique new title outlines current law, policy and practice as it relates to children in all areas of their lives. Written in a clear analytical style, it maps the legal landscape and highlights the key provisions and principles you need to navigate when handling cases involving children and families. No other book examines law and policy affecting children in such a comprehensive and detailed manner. It tackles a broad range of issues concerning children beyond traditional family law, including constitutional issues, and will keep your firm in step with current thinking and the latest legal practice nationally and internationally. Written by Ireland's leading children's rights expert, it brings you and your firm right up to date.