Child welfare - contact rights
Supreme Court judgment 2 March 2021, HR-2021-475-A, (case no. 20-137359SIV-HRET), civil case, appeal against judgment.
A, B (Counsel Pirashanthy Sivabalachandran) v. X municipality (Counsel Frode Lauareid)
Justices: Skoghøy, Noer, Ringnes, Østensen Berglund, Steinsvik
The care of two children, now aged eleven and seven, was taken over in 2015 after lengthy and futile measures by the child welfare services. The Supreme Court set the contact rights for the children and the biological parents at five times per year, see section 4-19 of the Child Welfare Act. The goal of family reunification had not been abandoned, although it was unrealistic in the nearest future. Both children had vulnerability factors that had to be considered when determining the extent of contact. There had been challenges concerning the quality of the contact sessions that had been held, which had been burdensome for the children. Due regard also had to be paid to the children's minority culture when determining the extent of contact, see Article 30 and Article 20 (3) of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. The case was heard jointly with two other cases, including HR-2021-474-A, outlining the legal starting points for determining contact in cases where the goal of family reunification has not been abandoned for good.