Public Children: Shaping New Law into Solution Focused Answers for Your Clients

Chair's Introduction

Public Children: Shaping new law into solution focused answers for your clients

Chaired by: Piers Pressdee QC

Piers is "a standout rising star and problem-solver;" "one of the most effective silks in the country." He revised and updated the ‘Children and Young Persons’ volumes of Halsbury’s.

Child evidence

Drawing on practical examples and live cases, how can you make it better for children giving evidence and hearing evidence, especially when they hold the key to the issues before the court?

Answered by: Stefano Nuvoloni QC

Stefano is "one of the market leaders in children work; handling the biggest and most complex cases." His primary focus is where expert evidence requires scrutiny.

Competing rights

When siblings are involved, how do you assess and weigh up their competing rights?

How significant are together and apart assessments for the court?

Answered by: Penny Howe QC

Penny is "quite simply one of the most impressive practitioners in this field." "Superb, assiduous, persuasive and approachable; experienced in all aspects of public children law."

Fact-finding hearings

When are they necessary?

How do you reopen them?

What is their proper conduct?

Answered by: Anthony Kirk QC

Anthony is "one of the go-to silks for difficult and challenging care cases." “He is eloquent and highly skilled at helping the clients move towards something that is acceptable.”

DOL

How do you secure the best outcome, for children and young people needing secure welfare placements?

What are the limits to the Court’s powers to make DoL orders?

Answered by: Amanda Weston QC

Amanda acted in T (A Child) [2018] EWCA on the Court’s jurisdiction to make an order depriving a transgender teen of her liberty where secure accommodation was not available.

NAI cases

Is there a shift in the wind over how the courts are thinking about shaking injuries, bruises or other NAI cases?

Answered by: Tina Cook QC

Tina is "a leading light, incredibly astute: a real star who is utterly dedicated to her cases." She is highly experienced in handling cases involving non-accidental and fatal injury.

Contact

How far can you push the Court on contact, including post-proceedings and post-adoption contact between siblings and even between parents and children?

Answered by: Gemma Taylor QC

Gemma is "one of the very best silks for her handling of serious public law cases relating to severe injury, abuse and adoption." "She is able to develop cases in such interesting ways."