(New Zealand Court of Appeal) Claims in negligence were made by the natural mother of a child who had been adopted, and also by the child, now an adult, complaining of the process followed in the adoption and also of failure to investigate a complaint made about his treatment when the child was still a child.
Held: The social worker’s function is one of independent professional judgment, the purpose of which is to facilitate the Family Court’s determination of the application. The legislative environment is of considerable relevance to the dual issues of proximity and policy which drive the conventional enquiry into whether it is fair, just and reasonable to impose a duty of care in a novel situation. The court struck out the first claim as incompatible with the adoption regime laid down by statute in New Zealand, but by a majority, allowed both the claims under the second head to proceed to trial.
Judges:
Richardson P
Citations:
[1998] 1 NZLR 262, [1998] NZFLR 145, (1997) 16 FRNZ 258
Jurisdiction:
England and Wales
Cited by:
Cited – JD v East Berkshire Community Health NHS Trust and others HL 21-Apr-2005
Parents of children had falsely and negligently been accused of abusing their children. The children sought damages for negligence against the doctors or social workers who had made the statements supporting the actions taken. The House was asked if . .
Cited – B and others v Attorney General and others PC 16-Jul-2003
(New Zealand) Children were removed from their home. The father was interviewed for suspected child abuse, but no charges were laid. He sought damages in negligence for the way the matter had been handled. Children whose allegations against adopted . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.
Professional Negligence, Health Professions
Updated: 07 February 2022; Ref: scu.224419