Europe calls the child to court to give evidence
March 11, 2010
5 law lords have removed the presumption against children giving evidence in family proceedings to bring us in line with the approach of the European Court of Human Rights. The starting point will now be that children should be called to give live evidence in court if it can be shown that the advantage it would bring in deciding the case would outweigh the risk of harm to the welfare of the child. Concern has come from those who envisage a situation where alleged abusers could try and force children to give evidence. Lady Hale, giving the leading judgment said that 'an unwilling child should rarely, if ever, be obliged to give evidence' and that in most cases the risk of harm to the child would outweigh the benefits of the trial. Has Europe got this wrong?