MJ (Mother) and LB (Father) v Local Authority and others: CA 17 Jul 2008

The parents appealed against an adoption order saying that the authority had made an error in the procedure. The court at first instance had said that the error had been remedied by the effect of the hearing before him.
Held: The appeal succeeded. It was vital that adoption authorities comply with the requirements of the 2002 Act. When such an error was made there was no power such as was assumed by the recorder, and he should have remitted the case for reconsideration. The framework could not be by-passed or short-circuited.

Judges:

Lord Justice Thorpe, Lady Justice Arden and Lord Justice Wall

Citations:

[2008] EWCA Civ 835, Times 21-Aug-2008

Links:

Bailii

Statutes:

Adoption and Children Act 2002 22

Jurisdiction:

England and Wales

Adoption

Updated: 17 July 2022; Ref: scu.270871