Child law reports reveal shortcomings in administration of child care proceedings

A judge in the District Court questioned the court’s ability to handle serious child care cases, according to reports which highlight shortcomings in the administration of child care proceedings.

The latest volume of reports from the Child Care Law Reporting Project (CCLRP) includes 20 cases involving poverty and homelessness, drug addiction and allegations of sexual abuse.

Dr Carol Coulter, CCLRP director, said: “The reports include a number of exceptionally lengthy and complex cases.

“These reveal the difficulties that arise in certain cases, especially those involving allegations of child sex abuse, when there are disputes about the admissibility of hearsay evidence and when Garda and other interviews with children are the subject of criticism.

“In several of these cases there were lengthy delays in interviewing the children about the allegations. We hope that the State agencies involved in these cases can learn from these detailed reports.”

In one case, the application for a Care Order for two young children was withdrawn by Tusla after 33 days of hearings, spread over many months. Here children were not interviewed by the Gardaí about sex abuse allegations for more than a year after the allegations were made. The withdrawal of the application was challenged in the High Court by the guardian ad litem and the foster parents, and the case returned to the District Court for further examination. It still continues.

In another lengthy case, this time taking 68 days, the judge said it raised “serious questions as to whether the District Court has systems in place for serious child care cases”. These Care Order proceedings had already been preceded by prolonged Interim Care Order proceedings, so the whole case took two and a half years.

The CCLRP also published reports of two judicial reviews in which a challenge to legal representation for guardians ad litem failed and a decision to deny foster carers financial assistance in obtaining orthodontic treatment for the child in their care was overturned.

Dr Coulter said: “The length of some child care proceedings, which usually include multiple adjournments, raises once again the urgency of establishing a dedicated family court with specialist judges which can deal with such cases in a timely fashion.

“It also raises the need for clarity on such difficult questions as the admission of hearsay evidence from children, and the need for protocols on the interviewing of children suspected of being the victims of sex abuse, so that the best evidence can be obtained for both child protection proceedings and criminal prosecutions.

“The incidence of homelessness as a factor in children going into or remaining in care is a matter which causes huge concern and gives added urgency to the need to tackle this scourge.”