Can I refuse to pay maintenance if I am denied access to my child?
Upon the birth of a child, both parents automatically have a duty to support that child. The fact that the child is born to married or unmarried parents is irrelevant. The duty is apportioned between the parents according to their respective means. S 15(1) of the Maintenance Act states that a court order for the […]
A child’s best interests and the adoption procedure
‘The best interests of a child’ is a concept deeply entrenched in our legal system – especially since the new constitutional dispensation. Section 28(2) of the Constitution provides that “A child’s best interests are of paramount importance in every matter concerning the child”. The best interest of a child is similarly of paramount importance in the adoption procedure. Adoption is the process […]
Understanding a child’s best interests
Section 28(2) of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996 (“the Constitution”) states that a child’s best interests are of paramount importance in every matter concerning a child. Courts are thus mandated by the Constitution, which is the highest law in the land, to always give effect to what would be best for […]