A Care Order may be contested before the Juvenile Court. If the Juvenile Court confirms the Care Order it will be reviewed before the Children and Young Person's Advisory Board.
Contesting the Order before the Juvenile Court
Once a Care Order is issued a letter will be sent by registered mail to the parents (or guardians) of the child. In order to object to the Care Order the parent should write a letter of objection to the Cheif Executive Officer of the Authority for Social Welfare Standards.
The objection must be sent within 21 days of notification. If the Care Order is not objected the Care Order will be automatically confirmed. After the objection is filed, the Care Order will be reviewed by the Juvenile Court and will decide whether to revoke or confirm the Care Order.
If the Care Order is confirmed by the Juvenile court, the parents may either ask the Juvenile Court to revisit its own decision and determine whether the Care Order is still justifiable. The parents may ask the Juvenile Court to reconsider this decision not before 4 months after the court confirmed the Care Order.
Custody Rights following a Care Order
After a Care Order is issued, the child's custody rights will be vested in the Minister responsible for Family. That minister will be responsible for all aspects of the child's life. These responsibilities include, determining the child's place of residence, matters of health and medication, which school the child attends, whether the child will be placed in foster care, access time between the biological parents and the child and whether the Care Order should be revoked so the child is returned to the parents.
While all decisions are made in the Minister's name, in practice the Minister relies on the advice given by the Children and Young Person's Advisory Board.
Contesting the Order before the Children and Young Persons Advisory Board
If a Care Order is confirmed, the Care Order will be periodically reviewed before the Children and Young Persons Advisory Board. The role of the Advisory Board is to advise the Minister on what decisions he should take for the child. The Board could recommend that access time between the parent and the child is increased or that the Care Order should be revoked because the real cause for having the Care Order issued has been addressed.
The practice is that the Advisory Board hears the case once every six months.
