Extending the Judicial Checklist in Scottish Family Court Cases: An Exercise of Caution or a Missed Opportunity?

Convention on the Rights of the Child, 2 the Committee on the Rights of the Child ('the Committee') described the creation of a comprehensive list of elements -i.e. a checklist -as 'useful' for providing 'concrete guidance, yet flexibility' in making decisions about children's best interests. 3 The Committee also envisaged that the child's right to express a view (Article 12, UNCRC 4 ) would feature prominently in any such list.Other elements, or factors, specified by the Committee included, e.g., preservation of the child's identity and family relations, safety, health and education, all of which link directly to relevant rights set out in the UNCRC itself.