The President of the Family Division has just handed down a major Judgment approving arrangements for the adoption in question as being in the Child’s best interests and iterating that in a case such as this, there is no hierarchy of rights under Article 8.
In his Judgment, the President said:
“This is a very complex and worrying case. It is, I think, by some margin the most difficult and concerning case of its type I have ever been involved in.”
Martin Downs represented the Adoption Agency with Andrew Bagchi QC of 1 Garden Court and was instructed by Brighton and Hove City Council.
The case is reported as: W (A Child), Re [2017] EWHC 829 (Fam).
The proceedings commenced in 2013 before a District Judge, were appealed to a Circuit Judge and then by way of a second appeal to the Court of Appeal in 2015 – reported as Re H (Children) (Application to Extend Time: Merits of Proposed Appeal) [2015] EWCA Civ 583, [2015] 1 WLR 5085, [2016] 1 FLR 952.
The re-hearing was listed before Russell J and was reported as Re W (Adoption Application: Reunification with Family of Origin) [2015] EWHC 2039 (Fam), [2016] 2 FLR 768.
Martin Downs and Andrew Bagchi QC were then instructed in the successful Appeal against that decision reported as Re H (A Child) (Appeal) [2015] EWCA Civ 1284, [2016] 2 FLR 1173.
