Northern Ireland

The legal note on this case is in two parts: part one, examining the facts and outlining the process, was considered in the last issue of Adoption & Fostering (O’Halloran, 2023); this part studies the court’s review of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) case law which, it felt, had not been taken into account by Judge Larkin. The case concerned an appeal by a Health and Social Care Trust against the decision of Judge Larkin to refuse an application by the Trust for an order freeing Joy, a 5-year-old child, for adoption pursuant to Article 18 of the Adoption (Northern Ireland) Order 1987. The court had already allowed the appeal and the freeing order had been made. The question of post-adoption contact was the only remaining issue in the present hearing. The court was assembled to provide reasons for reaching the decision it did and to reiterate some important points pertaining to good practice and procedure regarding freeing for adoption applications in this jurisdiction.