Canadian Child Welfare Law: Children, Families and the State

Charlotte Neff is an associate professor of law at Laurentian
University.

This collection of essays gives an overview of Canadian child welfare
law for professionals, primarily social workers. About one-third of the
book is devoted to child protection legislation. This section mainly
provides practical advice to social workers; but the chapter on “The
Child in Care” does emphasize accountability of social workers. The
special situation of Native people is also considered, along with the
role of the lawyer in child protection proceedings (including the
child’s, the parent’s, and the agency’s lawyer). The outline of
adoption law would be useful both for social workers and prospective
adoptive parents. A basic overview of the context of child-abuse
allegations is provided, including a primer on criminal procedure for
those involved in criminal prosecutions for abuse, as well as practical
advice on preparing child witnesses and on preparing for court in the
context of the rules of evidence. The chapter “Street Kids and
Adolescent Prostitution” is quite different from the rest of the book,
in that it considers the use of law to deal with a social problem.

Most of the contributors have a legal background; practicing lawyers,
judges, and legal academics are all represented. Many have been
personally involved in major revisions to child welfare law in recent
years. The legislation concerned is largely provincial, involving 12
jurisdictions (10 provinces, 2 territories); there is also a small
amount of relevant federal legislation. The book accordingly is not a
practical “how-to” manual, but rather provides a background to
assist in understanding legislation. Although many of the chapters
simply provide comparative statements of the law, there is also
considerable discussion of the varying underlying philosophies—the
interventionist approach (which focuses on the child’s best interests
and is social-work-oriented) versus the noninterventionist approach
(which emphasizes due process, family autonomy, and permanency
planning).