This invaluable guide to public child law has been fully updated to take account of all recent developments including the new provisions opening up the family courts to the media. The focus is on providing a clear, practical text with an examination of the key cases and an emphasis on fact based examples. There are bullet points at the beginning of each chapter summarising its content, procedural flowcharts and checklists. The book is not simply a court work but is an essential publication for all legal practitioners and other related professionals, whether new to this important area of law, or more experienced. Covers: Child Protection and Adoption: Introduction; Parental Responsibility and Disputes between Parents; Local Authorities and the Family; Referrals, Assessments and Emergency Intervention; Care and Supervision Orders; Adoption; Secure Accommodation; Wardship and the Inherent Jurisdiction; Challenging the Local Authority; Appendix 1: Children Act 1989 Appendix 2: Adoption and Children Act 2002 Appendix 3: Family Proceedings Rules 1991 Appendix 4: Family Procedure (Adoption) Rules 2005 *This title was acquired by Bloomsbury Professional in February 2016