Felicity Kaganas
Brunel University, Law, Faculty Member
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ABSTRACT Grandparents’ pressure groups have been campaigning for enhanced legal rights in relation to grandchildren. This article examines those campaigns and their outcomes in the context of contact disputes with parents. Although the... more
ABSTRACT Grandparents’ pressure groups have been campaigning for enhanced legal rights in relation to grandchildren. This article examines those campaigns and their outcomes in the context of contact disputes with parents. Although the groups have not achieved their objective of legislative change, it is suggested that they have made gains in other ways. In England and Wales grandparents have been included as significant figures in the new parenting plans and in Scotland there is a new charter for grandchildren. It is argued that grandparent pressure groups have succeeded in establishing an extra-legal norm favouring contact between grandparents and grandchildren. It is suggested that this success cannot be attributed to empirical evidence demonstrating the benefits of such contact; the evidence is not conclusive. Rather it can be attributed to strategies aimed at reconstructing children’s welfare to include ties with grandparents. In addition, the welfare principle has been re-interpreted to designate as harmful any resistance on the part of resident parents, usually mothers. Grandparent groups have benefited directly and indirectly from the campaigns of fathers’ rights groups which have not only emphasised contact and continuity, but have politicised the issue and have opened the way to the condemnation of mothers who oppose contact. The effect of the success of these campaigns is likely to be increased pressure on resident mothers to accede to contact. This may be to the detriment of both mothers and children.
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ABSTRACT Book description: The second edition of this work on family law, comprising text, cases and materials, provides not only an explication of legal principle but also explores, primarily from a feminist perspective, some of the... more
ABSTRACT Book description: The second edition of this work on family law, comprising text, cases and materials, provides not only an explication of legal principle but also explores, primarily from a feminist perspective, some of the assumptions about, and constructions of, gender, sexual orientation, class and culture that underlie the law. It examines the ideology of the family and, in particular, the role of the law in contributing to and reproducing that ideology. Structured around the themes of welfare, equality and family privacy, the book aims to offer the benefits of a textbook while also giving students a wide-ranging set of materials for classroom discussion, using the case method to demonstrate how various issues might be resolved. As well as providing a firm grounding in family law, the text sets the law in its social and historical context and encourages a critical approach by students to the subject. It provides an ideal introduction to family law for undergraduates, but will be equally helpful for postgraduate students of family law for whom it provides a challenging set of materials set within a theoretically rich set of ideas and arguments.
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Papers from an international symposium aimed at identifying best practices in relation to contact disputes and allegations of domestic abuse. The chapters present experiences and strategies adopted in a range of jurisdictions. They were... more
Papers from an international symposium aimed at identifying best practices in relation to contact disputes and allegations of domestic abuse. The chapters present experiences and strategies adopted in a range of jurisdictions. They were originally published as a special issue of the Journal of Social Welfare and Family Law, Vol 40, issue 4 (2018)
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... 324 FELICITY KAGANAS ciary to adopt a non-technical interpretation excluding the unlawfulness element. ... of force applied is not a determining factor; subject to the de minimis principle, there is no lower threshhold of vio-lence... more
... 324 FELICITY KAGANAS ciary to adopt a non-technical interpretation excluding the unlawfulness element. ... of force applied is not a determining factor; subject to the de minimis principle, there is no lower threshhold of vio-lence that must be crossed.45 As Milton observes, rape ...
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Papers from an international symposium aimed at identifying best practices in relation to contact disputes and allegations of domestic abuse. The chapters present experiences and strategies adopted in a range of jurisdictions. They were... more
Papers from an international symposium aimed at identifying best practices in relation to contact disputes and allegations of domestic abuse. The chapters present experiences and strategies adopted in a range of jurisdictions. They were originally published as a special issue of the Journal of Social Welfare and Family Law, Vol 40, issue 4 (2018)
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Law and Women's Rights in South Africa: An Overview FELICITY KAGANAS* Brunei, University of West London CHRISTINA MURRAY" University of Cape Town I INTRODUCTION South Africa's interim Constitution1 embodies a firm... more
Law and Women's Rights in South Africa: An Overview FELICITY KAGANAS* Brunei, University of West London CHRISTINA MURRAY" University of Cape Town I INTRODUCTION South Africa's interim Constitution1 embodies a firm commitment to ensuring equality between women ...
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PART A - INTRODUCTION. 1 Partnership under the Children Act 1989 - an overview, Felicity Kaganas. PART B LEGAL FRAMEWORKS FOR PARTNERSHIP. 2 Partnership with parents: doing something together under the Children Act 1989, Judith Masson,... more
PART A - INTRODUCTION. 1 Partnership under the Children Act 1989 - an overview, Felicity Kaganas. PART B LEGAL FRAMEWORKS FOR PARTNERSHIP. 2 Partnership with parents: doing something together under the Children Act 1989, Judith Masson, Professor of Law, Warwick University. 3 Partnership between parents, Christine Piper. 4 Partnership: reflections on some Canadian experiences, Alison Diduck, Lecturer in the Law Department and Associate Director of the CSLCF, Brunel University. PART C - PARTNERSHIP IN PRACTICE. 5 Social work and families: lessons from research, June Thoburn, Professor of Social Work, University of East Anglia. 6 Working with children, Brynna Kroll, Senior Lecturer and Postgraduate Course Leader, Social Work Department, West London Institute, Brunel University. 7 Tri-partnership: statutory, voluntary and private partnerships, Robin Solomon, Senior Lecturer, Social Work Department, West London Institute, Brunel University. 8 Partnership: a clinical perspective, Mark Ber...
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Section 1 What is a family?: law and the family love and marriage the adult-child-state relationship - reproduction and child-rearing mothers and fathers in law household economics. Section 2 The principles behind the law: equality -... more
Section 1 What is a family?: law and the family love and marriage the adult-child-state relationship - reproduction and child-rearing mothers and fathers in law household economics. Section 2 The principles behind the law: equality - dividing the family assets equal status under the Children Act 1989 - parental responsibility the welfare principle a public or private matter - child abuse a public or private matter? domestic violence. Section 3 Reordering family relationships: violence and separation making ends meet divorce - the process and its consequences children in non-marital relationships and financial adjustment on the breakdown of marital relationships decisions about children's upbringing - parental responsibility, the child's wishes and the court child protection.
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Grandparents’ pressure groups have been campaigning for enhanced legal rights in relation to grandchildren. This article examines those campaigns and their outcomes in the context of contact disputes with parents. Although the groups have... more
Grandparents’ pressure groups have been campaigning for enhanced legal rights in relation to grandchildren. This article examines those campaigns and their outcomes in the context of contact disputes with parents. Although the groups have not achieved their objective of legislative change, it is suggested that they have made gains in other ways. In England and Wales grandparents have been included as significant figures in the new parenting plans and in Scotland there is a new charter for grandchildren. It is argued that grandparent pressure groups have succeeded in establishing an extra-legal norm favouring contact between grandparents and grandchildren. It is suggested that this success cannot be attributed to empirical evidence demonstrating the benefits of such contact; the evidence is not conclusive. Rather it can be attributed to strategies aimed at reconstructing children’s welfare to include ties with grandparents. In addition, the welfare principle has been re-interpreted t...
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Full details of the published version of the book can be viewed at the link below. This chapter is available here with the permission of the publishers.
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This article examines the decisions made by judges in contested contact disputes and, in particular, the discourse that judges deploy to make their decisions seem unchallengeable and inevitable. It also examines the way in which they... more
This article examines the decisions made by judges in contested contact disputes and, in particular, the discourse that judges deploy to make their decisions seem unchallengeable and inevitable. It also examines the way in which they construct the problem, and so the parties, before them. The researchers analysed all reported contact cases between 1994 and early 2010 to identify the discursive strategies used, choosing those cases which best illustrate, or indeed contradict, the themes identified. Using the categories devised by Lazarus-Black in her analysis of ‘court rites’, as well as others developed for the purposes of this study, the article highlights the use of well established strategies such as the reliance on harm warrants, the delegitimisation or trivialisation of complaints, and the humiliation or stigmatisation of parents. However it goes on to note that, increasingly, contact disputes and their protagonists are pathologised. The problem is constructed by the courts as ...
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PART I Families and Relationships 1 Law and 'The Family' 2 Personal Relationships and Legal Status 3 Dissolution of Legal Relationships: The Process and its Consequences 4 Parent-Child Relationships 5 The Family-State... more
PART I Families and Relationships 1 Law and 'The Family' 2 Personal Relationships and Legal Status 3 Dissolution of Legal Relationships: The Process and its Consequences 4 Parent-Child Relationships 5 The Family-State Relationship: Social Policy PART II The Principles And The Law Section 1: Equality 6 Household Economics 7 Dividing the Family Assets 8 Equal Status under the Children Act 1989: Parental Responsibility Section 2: Welfare 9 The Welfare Principle 10 Disputes about Children and the Application of the Welfare Principle 11 Decisions about Children's Upbringing Section 3: The Public/Private Divide 12 A Public or Private Matter? Domestic Violence 13 A Public or Private Matter? Child Abuse 14 Child Protection 15 A Public or Private Matter-Alternative Dispute Resolution and Negotiation
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In the context of increased litigation over contact, this article examines the debate around proposals for a presumption of "shared parenting". It concludes that such a presumption would not achieve the aims of its proponents.... more
In the context of increased litigation over contact, this article examines the debate around proposals for a presumption of "shared parenting". It concludes that such a presumption would not achieve the aims of its proponents. Its introduction would also be fraught with practical and doctrinal problems.
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SURROGATE MOTHERHOOD: INTERNATIONAL PERSPECTIVES This book is a multi-disciplinary collection of essays from leading researchers and practitioners, exploring legal, ethical, social, psychological and practical aspects of surrogate... more
SURROGATE MOTHERHOOD: INTERNATIONAL PERSPECTIVES This book is a multi-disciplinary collection of essays from leading researchers and practitioners, exploring legal, ethical, social, psychological and practical aspects of surrogate motherhood in Britain and ...
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Section 1(2A) of the Children Act 1989 establishes a statutory presumption that ‘involvement’ of both parents in their children's lives after divorce or separation is in children's best interests. This paper sets out to examine... more
Section 1(2A) of the Children Act 1989 establishes a statutory presumption that ‘involvement’ of both parents in their children's lives after divorce or separation is in children's best interests. This paper sets out to examine what effect this had had. The aim of the legislation was to improve the transparency and clarity of judges’ reasoning. This would help to reduce the numbers of parents litigating and would placate fathers’ rights groups who were damaging confidence in the family justice system. Drawing on a sample of reported cases, this paper concludes that, at the higher levels, courts are not implementing the presumption. Nor has the presumption succeeded in placating fathers’ rights groups or significantly reducing the number of cases coming to court. It appears that the presumption has had little impact and the government's aims have not been realised. However, where it is having some impact, the presumption may be putting mothers and children at risk.
Research Interests: Law and Legal Studies
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All names have been changed to preserve confidentiality All rights reserved. No paragraph of this publication may be reproduced, copied or transmitted save with written permission or in accordance with the provisions of the Copyright Act... more
All names have been changed to preserve confidentiality All rights reserved. No paragraph of this publication may be reproduced, copied or transmitted save with written permission or in accordance with the provisions of the Copyright Act 1956 (as amended), or under the terms of any ...
Page 1. ANGLO-AMERICAN LAWREVIEW COMPENSATION FOR AIDS VICTIMS ByFELICITY KAGANAS 1. Introduction ... 441, Ward v. Hobbs (1878) 4 App. Cas. 13, Weller & Co. v. Foot and Mouth Disease Research Institute [19661 1 QB, 569. ...