Towards the end of last year, we represented *Clara (* not her real name) a young mother who was seeking a Specific Issue Order for the immediate return of her child to her care along with a Child Arrangement Order.
The mother was in an abusive relationship with her ex-partner and father of her only child, which involved both physical and financial abuse.
He would often restrict access to her finances and would not allow her to see members of her own family, which was worsened by the fact that his mother was enabling this treatment as someone who was heavily involved in her son’s relationship with our client.
Things escalated on the night of their separation when their child went to stay overnight with her paternal grandmother.
Clara’s former partner and mother then refused to return the child to our client’s care, subsequently making false allegations to police and the local authority about her ability to appropriately care for the child.
Clara had difficulties communicating with people, so we worked towards building a professional relationship based on trust and ease of communication, with information relating to her case explained in a clear and straightforward manner.
We made an urgent application to the court for a Specific Issue Order and a Child Arrangement Order; because of the claims against our client by the paternal grandmother, the process was unfortunately prolonged.
It was up to us to ensure our client had the best legal representation possible throughout numerous hearings.
We successfully obtained both orders, with the agreement of the court that the child should live with our client on a full-time basis.
Mother and daughter are now looking forward to the future and making up for lost time.
