Controversy about the Role of Children's Lawyers - Advocate or Best Interests Guardian? Comparing Practices in Two Canadian Jurisdictions

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dc.contributor.authorBala, N.en
dc.contributor.authorBirnbaum, R.en
dc.contributor.authorBertrand, L.en
dc.date.accessioned2018-07-19T23:35:24Z
dc.date.available2018-07-19T23:35:24Z
dc.date.issued2013
dc.description.abstractThere is controversy about the role that lawyers for children should play in family proceedings, but little empirical research about what they actually do. This article reports on a study (n = 166) of the experiences and perspectives of lawyers in two Canadian provinces with different policies for the role of children's counsel. Official policies seem to have only a limited impact on the practices of lawyers for children, whether the policies direct lawyers to adopt a best interests guardian or a traditional instructional advocate role. Lawyers generally seem more comfortable adopting an instructional advocacy role, especially with older children. Lawyers who represent children comment on the deep satisfaction that they feel from this work. This article compares the practice of lawyers in the two jurisdictions on a number of issues related to child clients and proposes policy changes to provide better guidance and education for children's lawyers.en
dc.identifier.citationBala, N., Birnbaum, R., & Bertrand, L. (2013). Controversy about the Role of Children�s Lawyers - Advocate or Best Interests Guardian? Comparing Practices in Two Canadian Jurisdictions. Family Court Review, 51, 681-697.en
dc.identifier.doihttp://dx.doi.org/10.11575/PRISM/32647
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/1880/107465
dc.language.isoen
dc.publisherWiley Online Libraryen
dc.publisher.urlhttps://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/17441617en
dc.titleControversy about the Role of Children's Lawyers - Advocate or Best Interests Guardian? Comparing Practices in Two Canadian Jurisdictionsen
dc.typejournal articleen
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