Jersey Children: Are They Adequately Represented In Care Proceedings?

There have been a number of articles in this Review over the last decade that both chart and discuss how children are represented in care proceedings. Despite the emphasis given in In re B (Separate Representation of Minors) as to how the representation of children in England is so different from that under our own Children (Jersey) Law 2002, the argument made in this article is that the courts in both Jersey and England enjoy some statutory latitude in the appointment of a guardian and lawyer to act for children in care proceedings. However, the approach in each jurisdiction to that latitude is indeed quite different and may have less to do with the actual laws and regulations themselves and more to do with differing views as to the value and contribution that a guardian and lawyer acting for a child can make to a given case.