((2/5)) The Danish custody system Many people from other countries have asked me to explain the Danish custody system as there is no official translation of the law; the Parental Responsibility Act. I include this explanation in the English edition of my book. As I am now preparing to publish the English edition, I am posting this explanation here on Facebook to make it available for everyone. Please share these posts so we can prevent more foreigners from falling into ‘the Danish trap’. ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: Institutionalised childhood in a welfare state Denmark does not have an integrated family court. Instead family matters such as custody, visitation and the child’s registered address, which need to be sorted out after divorce, are handled in a variety of unrelated institutions. These institutions take charge of children’s lives after a high-conflict divorce where parents cannot agree. Due to the lack of integration and communication, the cases can circulate in these institutions for many years. The State Administration All matters concerning visitation is determined in the Family Department of the State Administration, which is a unit under the Ministry of Internal Affairs, although the Parental Responsibility Act falls under the Ministry of Social Affairs. The State Administration is an administrative system and does not offer access to justice like the court system. The Appeals Board The decision from the State Administration can be appealed to the Appeals Board, which is a unit under the Ministry of Social Affairs. They rarely change the decision and there is a waiting period of 3-5 months during which the initial decision in the State Administration must be executed. The enforcement court If one of the parents does not comply with the visitation agreement, the decision can be carried out by the enforcement court, which is the part of the court system that also handles the collection of property in order to settle debt. The ordinary courts Denmark has a regular court system with a city court, high court and Supreme Court. This is where custody is decided. The Board of psychologists If you want to complain about a child expert assessment, you can do so to the Board of Psychologists, which is a unit under the Ministry of Social Affairs. It normally takes around one year to process a complaint and it does not put the case in court, or in the State Administration, on hold. The case will be decided even if a complaint is filed. And even if you loose custody based on the report from a psychologist, the case cannot be re-opened later even if the report has been criticised by the Board of Psychologists. Social services in the municipalities Social services often become involved in custody and visitation cases even if they have no formal jurisdiction. This happens when children are considered to be in a situation where they ‘fail to thrive’ or when a notification of concern is sent to the social services. Schoolteachers You are obliged by law to notify the authorities if you concerned for a child’s wellbeing. Certain groups, such as schoolteachers, have increased obligation to react. However, because ‘failure to thrive’ has never been defined, notifications of concern are far from always based on professionalism and objectivity, but rather on personal preferences or even disputes and disagreements with parents. If the State Administration or the courts need unbiased statements, they will ask the child’s schoolteacher. In this way schoolteachers have an impact which can decide the course of a child’s life in a divorced family. The Danish Law Society The Danish Law Society is not directly related to family cases, but it is very relevant to understanding the situation in Denmark. One of the primary purposes of the Danish Law Society is to ‘serve the rule of law in Denmark’. Despite the failure of access to justice and fairness in justice flourishing under the Danish custody law, there has not been a single reaction from the Danish Law Society over the course of the 7 years this law has been in existence. Thus, even the ordinary watchdogs in Denmark are sleeping and there is a failure in the system to respond to an ever-worsening situation. ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: From the English foreword to The biggest power pig wins - on custody law, and how to protect yourself from the game” by Libbie Bouffon – soon to be published on Amazon and Saxo.
Posted on: Fri, 31 Oct 2014 11:01:44 +0000
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