Rights of Transgender Parents & Children in the Family Courts - Live at Your Desk

Introduction

In recent years, there has been a substantial increase in the number of children and adults identifying as transgender and accessing gender development services. It is unsurprising, therefore, that the family court has had to grapple with evolving notions of gender identity and how the existing laws should be used to best meet the needs of transgender parents and children.

It is incumbent on all family law practitioners to familiarise themselves not only with the statutory and case law as it pertains to trans issues, but also with the specific concerns and challenges that trans people may face.

This virtual classroom seminar will provide an overview of the case law in respect of transgender parents and children and highlight some of the key issues that family law practitioners should be aware of when assisting trans clients.

What You Will Learn

This live and interactive session will cover the following:

• Concepts of gender identity and terminology
• Legal gender and Gender Recognition Certificates
• Some of the specific social challenges that transgender individuals face
• Best practice when working with transgender clients and children, with reference to the Equal Treatment Bench Book and the Equality Act 2010
• Legal parenthood for transgender parents
• Research on transgender parents as carers and the court’s changing attitudes to child arrangements
• The process by which a transgender child may change their name, including where a parent objects
• The court’s approach to puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones for children following Bell v Tavistock [2020], AB v CD [2021], and Bell v Tavistock [2021]
• Safeguarding and child protection issues
• Further resources for practitioners

Recording of live sessions: Soon after the Learn Live session has taken place you will be able to go back and access the recording - should you wish to revisit the material discussed.