Magister Legum - LLM / No abstract available. / South Africa

Many women have shared with family lawyers such as myself their stories about how the legal system marginalized their maternal connections and child caregiving experiences by imposing on them legal positions and constructs about mothering and caring that differed from the reality of their experiences. This thesis develops the argument that neither the litigation nor the mediation of child custody disputes in Canada address the systemic problems association with the marginalization of women. Both processes reflect white, male, middle class, heterosexual expressions, productions and perpetuations of patriarchy. I first define the dominant ideology of motherhood and present differing mothering experiences which more accurately reflect the realities of caregiving. I then deconstruct the legal and social methods used in both the litigation and mediation of child custody in order to demonstrate their use of dominant ideologies of motherhood and family to limit women’s caregiving opportunities. From the context of two women’s legal experiences, I explore the possibility of introducing feminist legal methods into mediation and litigation in recognition of the fact that women must engage with the legal system to address the practicalities of childcare, economics and shelter. I respond to the popular argument that mediation is a panacea to the ills of litigation by taking the position that both are situated along a continuum perpetuating the same ideological assumptions about mothers and family which oppress all women to some degree. I argue that mediation is ultimately more oppressive to women because unlike litigation, systemic problems in mediation are obscured by romanticism and rhetoric. Firstly, I attempt a mother and child reunion by trying to create a place for feminist conceptions of caregiving within child custody litigation and mediation which would empower women. I conclude that it will be difficult to create a space for feminist methodology in custody litigation and mediation without the continued efforts of lawyers to reconstruct the ideology of mother. / Law, Peter A. Allard School of / Graduate

Includes bibliographical references / False child sexual abuse allegations in divorce and custody proceedings are a disconcerting problem in South Africa having devastating effects on the family unit going through a divorce, and on society as a whole. Limited research has been done in South Africa on the subject matter (Janse Van Rensburg, 2008; McDonald, 1998; Preller, 2014).This study utilize General System's Theory, the Theory of Reasoned Action, the Theory of Planned Behaviour and the Crisis Theory to explore the subject matter. An explorative qualitative approach with a constructivist epistemology was utilised. The participants in this study involved thirty key informants, who included social workers, psychologists, counsellors and other professionals who specialise in divorce, custody and sexual abuse matters. A further five falsely accused parents and five accusing parents formed part of the sample. The data collection method used was that of in-depth interviews and research assistants were trained and appointed to gather the information. Notes were taken and the interviews were recorded to enable the necessary data analysis. Content and thematic data analyses were used to analyse the data and obtain the necessary results. The research findings indicate that false child sexual abuse allegations have a detrimental effect on the accused parent and explain the agony, severe trauma and emotional distress the falsely accused parent go through. There are various factors contributing towards false child sexual abuse allegations and results show that the impact of such allegations is11detrimental to the family system, the child and the falsely accused parent and brings disequilibrium to the family system that is very difficult to restore post-divorce. The mental health perspective on false child sexual abuse paints a rather bleak picture of the legal and social system and on adequately addressing the social issues at hand. Results highlight that false allegations are a complicated phenomenon and not all professionals nor the courts have the necessary skills to deal adequately with these matters. Research recommends amendments to South African Policy and Legislation, changes to the South African court system, and capacity building of mental health professionals. As this research is a ground-breaking study in South Africa, as no scientific research has been published on the subject matter, this study should be used as a basis for future research studies.

The primary goal of the courts in deciding which parent (if any) should be awarded custody of the child is complicated by the presence of domestic violence. Children are direct and indirect victims of domestic violence. As well as the possibility of being physically injured, they are psychologically impacted by the trauma of witnessing violence in the household and may continue a cycle of violence into adulthood. States vary on the weight that is given to domestic violence as a factor in custody decisions. Judges have discretion in the options available to them in making custody determinations. Judges need to be educated on the dynamics of domestic violence to create a more informed judiciary. This paper examines the current law in Florida and gives recommendations for improvements in the way Florida handles custody of children

No description available.

Conclusion - Problems of custody instrument The topic of this diploma thesis is area of problems of custody instrument. This security instrument of procedural criminal law brings many problems especially in the area of its application and its performance. Nowadays this issue is considered to be greatly controversial which is obvious with regards to its grave breach of human rights. Custody also provides great space for existence of judicial errors due to requirement of immediacy decision and contradictory interests of accused person and investigation authority. The topic of diploma thesis is divided into 4 chapters. The first chapter comprises development of criminal procedural law and related development of custody. This chapter provides general summary of the development of custody and it should introduce custody from the perspective of excursion into history of custody. The chapter also appoints to the most important phases of development of custody instrument. Following chapter contains facts about material custody law de lege lata. For first there is interpreted the term of custody instruments and assumptions for its application. This chapter also deal with the most important principles of custody and reasons of custody and its application. The end of this chapter focus on strengthened custody and...

91 Abstract - Means of substitution of custody The topic of this thesis are the means of substitution of custody. The institute of custody is a very actual topic that is developing dynamically and is still controversial. Thanks to both domestic and international courts, the standard of protection of basic human rights keeps increasing and custody is therefore considered an extreme securing measure that can only be used in case there are no usable milder means. The aim of this thesis is to introduce these means of substitution of custody, stating their issues in theory and in praxis, their critical evaluation and suggestions de lege ferenda. The first chapter of this thesis focuses on general characteristics of custody and conditions of its use. The first chapter is a crucial part of the thesis as the means of substitution of custody directly relate to the institute of custody itself. The second chapter of this thesis focuses on the development of individual means of substitution of custody. It is a rather brief overview of the most significant amendments to legislation. In the author's opinion though, to correctly understand the current legislation concerning means of substitution of custody, it is necessary to be aware of the historical context of the establishment and use of these means. The third and...

<p>The aim of this study is to look how the Social Service has handled custody issues. The study has a legal and social aspect with a purpose to investigate how the law affects the social administration as well as the family. During a period of one year a quantitative and qualitative study was performed within the social administration in a nearby community. The study focus is partly on the relationship between the law, family and society. The main questions have been: Which one of the parents, mother or father, did in fact get the custody and why? How has the children’s point of view been reported in the inquiry? A child needs a well organized everyday life in a preferably conflict free environment. The result shows that the mothers are most often presented as the child’s main provider but it´s not related to gender. The main reason is the child´s need to stability, security and structure in everyday life and therefore the authority often chose to not change the child´s existing resident and surroundings. We have also found out that more focus must be put on the child’s wish, they need to be considered. For the best interest of the child!</p>

<p>The aim of this study is to look how the Social Service has handled custody issues. The study has a legal and social aspect with a purpose to investigate how the law affects the social administration as well as the family. During a period of one year a quantitative and qualitative study was performed within the social administration in a nearby community. The study focus is partly on the relationship between the law, family and society. The main questions have been: Which one of the parents, mother or father, did in fact get the custody and why? How has the children’s point of view been reported in the inquiry? A child needs a well organized everyday life in a preferably conflict free environment. The result shows that the mothers are most often presented as the child’s main provider but it´s not related to gender. The main reason is the child´s need to stability, security and structure in everyday life and therefore the authority often chose to not change the child´s existing resident and surroundings. We have also found out that more focus must be put on the child’s wish, they need to be considered. For the best interest of the child!</p>

The aim of this study is to look how the Social Service has handled custody issues. The study has a legal and social aspect with a purpose to investigate how the law affects the social administration as well as the family. During a period of one year a quantitative and qualitative study was performed within the social administration in a nearby community. The study focus is partly on the relationship between the law, family and society. The main questions have been: Which one of the parents, mother or father, did in fact get the custody and why? How has the children’s point of view been reported in the inquiry? A child needs a well organized everyday life in a preferably conflict free environment. The result shows that the mothers are most often presented as the child’s main provider but it´s not related to gender. The main reason is the child´s need to stability, security and structure in everyday life and therefore the authority often chose to not change the child´s existing resident and surroundings. We have also found out that more focus must be put on the child’s wish, they need to be considered. For the best interest of the child!