Re C (Welfare of Child: Immunisation) – Room to Refuse? Immunisation, Welfare and the Role of Parental Decision Making

17 Pages Posted: 29 Mar 2012

Date Written: March 29, 2012

Abstract

Disputes between parents over routine childhood immunisation raise questions about the justiciability of minor issues of medical treatment and the courts’ handling of parental decisions. This commentary on the first instance and Court of Appeal judgments in Re C argues that the construction of welfare frequently deployed in such disputes is a narrow and individualistic one which privileges medical best interests and norms over a wider conception of welfare, and fails to take sufficient account of rights-based arguments.

Keywords: family law, child law, immunisation, welfare, parental decision making

Suggested Citation

O'Donnell, Kath, Re C (Welfare of Child: Immunisation) – Room to Refuse? Immunisation, Welfare and the Role of Parental Decision Making (March 29, 2012). Child and Family Law Quarterly, Vol. 16, No. 2, pp. 213-229, 2004, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2030749

Kath O'Donnell (Contact Author)

University of Hull ( email )

Cottingham Road
Hull, Great Britain HU6 7RX
United Kingdom

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