When it comes to parental rights and ensuring the absolute best for your children, you need to be certain about who you are putting your faith into. This is why at Higgins Miller, we proudly hold the title of expert child law solicitors
Our expertise ranges from complex family separations, residency and custody issues and circumstances where it is debated how often and when the children should see the other parent (contact and access rights).
We understand family law inside out and know it can feel like a minefield. We’re here to minimise your stress and help you to gain a thorough understanding of the law, your rights and how to move forward with your current family situation.
Our first words of advice for disputes
Before consulting the law and your rights as a parent, we always urge you and your co-parent to talk to try to resolve any issues you have independent of legal advisors. It is only when parents cannot resolve an issue that the law becomes involved. In most cases, it isn’t necessary. However, the law (and ourselves) are there for when it is required.
The law and parents
Similar to our previous article regarding Grandparents and legal rights, the purpose of this article is to walk you through your rights as a parent. Of course, there is rarely a ‘one size fits all’ approach, as every domestic situation is different. However, we will outline the law and any accompanying information you need to know.
Parental rights and responsibilities
As outlined by the UK Gov, all mothers (and the majority of fathers) have parental responsibility of their child / children. This means as parents you must provide a home for the child and protect and maintain the child. To fulfil this role, there are responsibilities that you must abide by, such as disciplining the child, providing access to education for them, providing them with medical treatment when necessary and agreeing their name and officially naming them.
Aside, of course, this list isn’t exhaustive, as being a parent involves many more responsibilities.
Parental rights and responsibilities for separated parents
There can be some confusion when it comes to parental rights when the co-parents are separated. Concisely, if a parent doesn’t live with their child but has parental responsibility, it doesn’t mean you automatically have a right to spend time with your child. This would need to be agreed upon and arranged with the parent who is currently living with the child.
However, huge decisions, such as moving schools, or moving away must be made together, with both parents being included, as such significant changes and decisions will have an impact on the child’s life. Usually, joint and mutual agreement is offered in the form of writing.
In the case of a separation, you have a responsibility as a parent to ensure your child is fully financially supported.
Who has parental responsibility? (Mother and Father example)
We tend to find that in our experience, parents assume they have parental responsibility, which might not always be the case. A mother automatically has parental responsibility for her child, right from birth.
With regards to the father, he has parental responsibility if he’s either named as the father on the child’s birth certificate (after a certain date and depending on the location of the birth within the UK) or if he is married to the mother of the child.
Other parental examples
There are various parenting situations that can occur, such as unmarried parents, births registered outside of the UK, births within different parts of the UK, same-sex parents, civil partners and non-civil partners. Each situation can vary, so it’s always best to seek advice, either by giving us a call on 0161 429 7251 or if you’d prefer, you can email us at [email protected].
Understanding your rights
When it comes to your rights, parental responsibility can prove significantly important. Whether you currently have parental responsibility, are unsure whether you have or haven’t, or wish to apply for parental responsibility, it’s always in your best interest to seek support and be informed legally and thoroughly. Depending on your connection to the child and whether or not you have the mother’s agreement, your next steps may vary.
The role of the court
Linking back to the previous point, the court can intervene and help in parental responsibility cases, where you want parental responsibility but are unable to agree on the terms and arrangements with the child’s mother. The completed form to start this process is then sent to a local family court.
For further information on court orders, visit Citizens Advice Bureau.
Our final word of support
If you find yourself needing support and advice as a parent without parental responsibility, please feel free to give us a call on 0161 429 7251 or if you’d prefer, you can email us at [email protected]. We treat all enquiries with the utmost confidentiality and offer impartial, honest advice. We are here to listen and impartially guide you, in order for you to find the best resolution for you and your personal situation.
At Higgins Miller Solicitors we are here to help. Through our honest, transparent costing system, you have complete prior knowledge, so worrying about potential legal costs can be crossed off your to-do-list!
Depending on your situation, we are also in a fortunate position to work with the Legal Aid Agency so for those cases where legal aid is available, we are able to offer legal aid. For those not eligible for legal aid, we strive to ensure our prices are always affordable and all of our family law services accessible.
At the heart of everything we do is our client and their wellbeing, therefore we are known for offering advice on certain aspects of your case, for you to deal with alone, whilst we conduct other parts of it that would be best for a legal professional to do. Alongside this, we also offer flexible payments on our hourly charges, so we really do everything in our power to help and support at every stage.