L’« intérêt de l’enfant » est un concept fondamental en droit de la famille puisqu’il constitue le critère déterminant dans toute décision qui concerne l’enfant. Le Code civil du Québec énonce, au second alinéa de l’article 33, les facteurs qui doivent servir à le déterminer, soit « les besoins moraux, intellectuels, affectifs et physiques de l’enfant, son âge, sa santé, son caractère, son milieu familial et les autres aspects de sa situation ». Les auteurs qui s’y sont intéressés l’ont abordé sous différents angles. Certains se sont intéressés à ses origines et à son évolution. D’autres en ont proposé leur propre définition. En ce qui nous concerne, nous avons choisi d’explorer ledit concept en nous intéressant aux diverses interprétations qu’il reçoit de la part des tribunaux dans les décisions relatives à la garde des enfants dans un contexte post-rupture, et ce, à la lumière du genre et de l’âge du décideur. Le concept d’intérêt de l’enfant étant hautement indéterminé, son interprétation est laissée à l’appréciation du juge qui en précisera le contenu en référence à la loi et aux faits particuliers de chaque cas d’espèce. Or, dans les situations où, une fois considéré le contexte factuel et normatif, le juge se retrouve face à une situation « neutre », c’est-à-dire où la garde exclusive et la garde partagée sont tout aussi envisageables, peut-on prétendre que son l’inclinaison vers l’une ou l’autre de ces modalités de garde est influencée par des facteurs autres que le droit et les faits mis en preuve ? Telle est la question au cœur de notre étude. Reposant sur des théories reconnues et bien établies affirmant l’importance de tenir compte du contexte social et de l’expérience individuelle du décideur dans la démarche interprétative que le droit sous-tend, l’hypothèse que nous soumettons est qu’au-delà des faits mis en preuve et du droit, des éléments indissociables au processus d’interprétation, à savoir les valeurs, les idéologies et les traits caractéristiques dominants que sous-tendent le genre et la génération du décideur, influent sur la teneur des jugements qu’il prononce. Sans admettre que ces éléments suffisent, à eux seuls, pour expliquer le produit judiciaire, nous sommes d’avis qu’on ne peut qualifier d’improbable l’incidence qu’ils exercent sur celui-ci. Nous intéressant au processus cognitif qui préside à la réflexion des décideurs, notre thèse vise à cerner, à travers une analyse interdisciplinaire, les facteurs humains et les forces sociales qui structurent les expériences et qui sont susceptibles d’avoir un impact sur les décisions judiciaires. L’objectif de notre étude n’est pas d’établir un lien de causalité entre le genre et l’âge du juge et les décisions qu’il rend, mais plutôt de vérifier si des corrélations peuvent être établies entre ces paramètres. Désirant aller au-delà des perceptions traditionnelles véhiculées par la doctrine classique, nos travaux se veulent davantage une contribution au développement d’une conception non formaliste du droit plutôt qu’une démonstration que le profil identitaire des décideurs conditionne systématiquement et invariablement leurs décisions. Une étude de ce genre comporte certes des difficultés en ce qu’elle confronte le juriste à des concepts et des théories qui appartiennent à d’autres champs disciplinaires et qui, partant, ne lui sont pas familiers. La compréhension plus fine du processus interprétatif et des décisions qui en résultent en justifie cependant le bien-fondé. / The “best interest of the child” is a fundamental concept of family law as it is the decisive criterion in each decision concerning a child. The Civil Code of Québec enumerates, in art. 33 para. 2, the criteria that must be taken into consideration, which are “the moral, intellectual, emotional and physical needs of the child, [his] age, health, personality and family environment, and [the] other aspects of his situation”. Scholars have approached this concept from different angles. While some of them have expressed interest in its origin and evolution, others have articulated their own definition. In this thesis, I chose to explore the concept of the “best interest of the child” by examining the manner in which courts have interpreted this principle in cases related to child custody, and to what extent it is affected by the gender and the age of the decision-maker. Indeed, whenever a child is part of a conflict, regardless of whether it concerns custody or any other matter, his best interest constitutes the central element. Yet the concept of the child's best interest is highly indeterminate: its interpretation is left to the discretion of the judge, who will specify its content according to the law and facts of each case. But once the judge has considered the factual and normative contexts, he can sometimes face a « neutral » situation, for which he could consider sole and shared custody as options. Would it therefore be accurate to assume that the judge’s inclination toward one or the other option of custody is governed by elements other than the law and facts of the case? This is the main question of this study. Based on recognized and well established theories asserting the importance of considering the social context and individual experience of the decision maker in the interpretative process, the proposed hypothesis is that beyond the facts and the law, there are other elements that have a crucial influence on the process of interpretation (and on the content of the decision that a judge renders), most notably the identity profile of the judge (i.e., gender and age, including their underlying values and ideologies). Indeed, and although the values, ideologies, and dominant social characteristics are not sufficient in themselves to explain the judicial outcomes, I nevertheless consider that the impact that the former has on the latter cannot be denied. By examining the cognitive process that governs the reasoning of the decision maker, this thesis aims to identify, through interdisciplinary analysis, human factors and social forces that shape individual experiences and are likely to have an impact on judicial decisions. The objective of this research is not to establish a causal link between the profile of the judge and his/her decisions, but rather to determine whether a correlation can be established between these parameters. Wishing to go beyond traditional perceptions conveyed by the traditional doctrine, this thesis is a contribution to the development of a non-formalist conception of law, as a way of demonstrating the idea that the profile of the judge systematically and consistently frames his decisions. A study of this kind certainly faces difficulties, in that it confronts the lawyer with concepts and theories that belong to other disciplines, and which therefore may not be familiar. However, the deep understanding of the interpretive process and resulting decisions justify the importance of this kind of research.

Uncontested proceedings in cases involving minors The aim of this thesis is to provide a comprehensive overview of non-contentious proceedings in cases involving minors with a defined focus on the adoption proceedings and court custody of minors. The purpose of my thesis is to analyse the area of international child abduction and the proceedings of that. Chapter One describes the contentious and non- contentious proceedings and distinction between that with an overview of non-contentious proceedings in cases involving minors and their distribution. For the purpose of this text, non- contentious proceedings in cases involving minors are divided into two subdivisions, namely the adoption proceedings and court custody of minors. Chapter Two concentrates on court custody of minors. Chapter Three focuses on the international child abduction, which is selected from court custody of minors. New substantive law was the cause of creation of the new system of procedural law, which shows a certain degree of shortcomings regarding the procedure for the adoption of an full age. The issue of international child abduction and proceedings of that is regulated by Czech and supranational law. All these regulations have common several principles which are important for all the proceedings in the court custody of...

I föreliggande studie undersöks hur rättssäkerheten tillämpas och tolkas allmänt för barn som placeras utanför det egna hemmet av socialtjänsten samt hur rättssäkerheten tolkas och tillämpas när det rör barn som är placerade på ideella kvinnojourer. Studien är av rättssociologisk art. Metoden som används i studien är en kombination av rättsdogmatisk metod och samhällsvetenskaplig metod. Detta för att genom den rättsdogmatiska metoden studera lagstiftning och den samhällsvetenskapliga undersöka hur lagen tillämpas i praktiken. Materialet består av texter samt intervju. Teorier om rättssäkerhet används för att skapa en förståelse av materialet (Staaf; Petczenik) Studien visar att det finns brister i den formella rättssäkerheten samt att den materiella rättssäkerheten inte diskuteras över huvudtaget. Studiens resultat visar även att det finns ett glapp mellan rätten och dess tillämpning. / The present study examines how the rule of law is applied and interpreted for children placed outside their home by social services and how the rule of law are interpreted and applied in the case of children placed on non-profit refuges. The study has a sociology of law approach. Methods used in the study are a combination of legal dogmatic and social scientific method. The material consists of texts and one interview. Theories of the rule of law is used to create an understanding of the material (Staaf; Petczenik). The study shows that there are deficiencies in the formal legal rights as well as to the substantive legal rights, that will not be discussed at all. The results of the study shows that there is a gap between the law and its application.

<p>The aim of the study was to examine how child investigators in the police force interpret and apply the notification of preliminary investigation (FuK) and the po-lice act in their child investigative interviews with alleged victims of sexual abuse. Questions at issue were how child investigators relate to FuK 17-19 §§, re-garding child investigative interviews and to FuK 16 § and the police act 3 §, re-garding their co-operation with social services. The theory and method used in this study was Sociology of Law. Qualitative interviews were conducted with eight child investigators, one from each police district in Stockholm. The results of the study conclude that despite special qualifications, child investigators may find themselves in difficulty in receiving or interpreting information from chil-dren, therefore they may need to consult a person with expert knowledge. Fur-thermore the results conclude that all of the child investigators with no exception inform the social services when a report to the police is received. Moreover, the results show that child investigators in general are aware of the legislation and re-late in compliance with it. In conclusion, children are given special treatment in relation to adults, in order to place children on equality with them.</p>

The aim of the study was to examine how child investigators in the police force interpret and apply the notification of preliminary investigation (FuK) and the po-lice act in their child investigative interviews with alleged victims of sexual abuse. Questions at issue were how child investigators relate to FuK 17-19 §§, re-garding child investigative interviews and to FuK 16 § and the police act 3 §, re-garding their co-operation with social services. The theory and method used in this study was Sociology of Law. Qualitative interviews were conducted with eight child investigators, one from each police district in Stockholm. The results of the study conclude that despite special qualifications, child investigators may find themselves in difficulty in receiving or interpreting information from chil-dren, therefore they may need to consult a person with expert knowledge. Fur-thermore the results conclude that all of the child investigators with no exception inform the social services when a report to the police is received. Moreover, the results show that child investigators in general are aware of the legislation and re-late in compliance with it. In conclusion, children are given special treatment in relation to adults, in order to place children on equality with them.

Background/aim: The purpose of this sociological study "Genus in the Child's Best Interest" was to, from the Administrative Court's decree about the child's own behavior, further clarify the concept of the child's best interest by studying how the concept is expressed in decrees with focus on genus. Theory: Three genus theories, to compare girls and boys, Mary John's power theory, the grown ups definition of what the reality is and what it should contain, and a labeling theory, where the people with power are the ones to define what's normal and what's not, have been used to analyze the result in this study. Method: A content analyses was used to analyze the decrees, with the focus on girls and boys between the ages of 12 to 19, where they have been forced into treatment by the law. Result: The concept of a child's best interest does make a difference between girls and boys in the decrees, and the girls have more power because they have more room to express themselves and are less responsible for their thoughts and actions. The concept is possible to use, but the definition is subjective and could be colored by the societies values and norms.

This qualitative study aimed to examine which discourses can be found within the Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (BUP) and women’s shelters against domestic violence, concerning children that have experienced violence within the family, from two perspectives: the child’s need of father and of protection from violence. The study also aimed to examine which discourses can be found within the organisations concerning children’s well-being, how they define their mission concerning domestic violence and how this can affect the practical work with children that have experienced violence and their parents. The questions that the study aimed to answer were which discourses can be distinguished within BUP and the women’s shelters against domestic violence and how they can affect the different agencies’ view of the child’s need and well-being. These questions have been answered with collected interviews from the two respective agencies which have then been interpreted and processed through a critical discourse analysis from different theoretical concepts such as dominant discourses and service discourses in relation to Social Work, children’s need as a social construction and discourses of the child as a victim and an active participant. What the study showed was that the active participant-discourse overall was more prominent within BUP and that the victim-discourse was more prominent within the women’s shelters against domestic violence but also that both discourses were distinguishable in different ways and to different extents in both agencies in different combinations and variations. The study also found that the discourses, in different ways and to different extents, also affected the agencies’ view of the child’s need of father and of protection from violence.

Background/aim: The purpose of this sociological study "Genus in the Child's Best Interest" was to, from the Administrative Court's decree about the child's own behavior, further clarify the concept of the child's best interest by studying how the concept is expressed in decrees with focus on genus. Theory: Three genus theories, to compare girls and boys, Mary John's power theory, the grown ups definition of what the reality is and what it should contain, and a labeling theory, where the people with power are the ones to define what's normal and what's not, have been used to analyze the result in this study. Method: A content analyses was used to analyze the decrees, with the focus on girls and boys between the ages of 12 to 19, where they have been forced into treatment by the law. Result: The concept of a child's best interest does make a difference between girls and boys in the decrees, and the girls have more power because they have more room to express themselves and are less responsible for their thoughts and actions. The concept is possible to use, but the definition is subjective and could be colored by the societies values and norms.

Ce mémoire concerne le droit de l'immigration. Il s'agit des étrangers visés d'une mesure de renvoi malgré le fait qu'ils aient des liens familiaux au Canada. L'affaire Baker, de la Cour suprême du Canada, est notre point de référence puisqu'elle prône, entre autres, le respect de l'intérêt supérieur de l'enfant en matière d'immigration. À partir de cette affirmation et de la pratique législative et jurisprudentielle qui s'en est suivie, arriverait-on un jour à reconnaître la protection du droit de l'étranger à mener une vie familiale normale comme il se fait en Europe ? Ce chemin lui serait-il accessible ? Ce projet vise à démontrer cette évolution juridique qui pourrait survenir au Canada dans le cadre d'un plus grand respect des droits fondamentaux de la personne. / This thesis relates to the right of immigration. It concems aliens who are aimed with a removal order in spite of the fact that they have family bonds in Canada. The Baker case, of the Supreme Court of Canada, is our point of reference since it preaches, inter alia, the respect of the best interest of the child as regards to immigration. Starting from this assertion and legislative & jurisprudential practices that followed from the case, would one arrive one day at recognizing to every migrant the right to a normal family life like it is done in Europe? Would this path be accessible? This project aims at showing this legal evolution that could occur in Canada within the framework of a larger respect of the fundamental human rights. / "Mémoire présenté à la Faculté des études supérieures en vue de l'obtention du grade de maître en droit option droit international"

The purpose of this study was to explore if and how the Swedish Supreme Court are using the concept “the child’s best interest”. This concept is used a lot in Swedish legislation, but it needs interpretation every time it´s used and is often perceived as unclear. This makes it interesting to see how this affects the individual child´s legal rights. Furthermore I want to see if the Supreme Court listen to the child´s own opinion and if not, are there any justifications to why not. The study has a quantitative starting point, where I have gone through a number of judgments and then chosen seven out of a qualitative point where there has been a discussion from the Supreme Court around the individual and the best interest of the child for the individual child and the methods of analysis used in this study are social constructionism, legal sociology and analysis of the idea. The study shows a lack of consistency among the professionals of what the concept really stands for, which negatively affects the legal rights for the individual child. The solution is a closer collaboration between social workers, judges and lawyers to make the concept clearer and more applicable.