Arguable grounds exist to challenge State agency’s application for care order

Judicial review – leave application - social services in England indicated that they would take a mother’s unborn child into care – mother relocated to this jurisdiction – child was born - Child and Family Agency applied for and were granted an emergency care order – agency gained custody of the child - application for an interim care order – order made without having heard complete evidence - care order was extended – argued that this order is invalid because there is an absence of compliance with statutory prerequisites - reasons given were insufficient – agency expressed fear that the mother might move on to some third country – no evidence – habeas corpus application refused by High Court – appeal to Court of Appeal - further care application - designed to improve the position of the agency – proceedings in the Court of Appeal – need leave of the High Court to amend certificate – dispute about whether counsel for the mother asked the Court of Appeal to restrain the District Court application – President of Court of Appeal sitting alone in a directions list lacked jurisdiction to do so –- digital audio recording confirmed counsel for the mother’s account – initiated judicial review proceedings seeking to restrain hearing - Court directed leave application to be on notice - alleged infirmity in grounding papers - alleged lack of disclosure - relevance of the omissions in this case - no fault in mother’s level of disclosure - service of motion directly on the mother – a solicitor should neither interview nor otherwise communicate with any party on the other side of a matter who, to the solicitor’s knowledge, has retained another solicitor to act in the matter about which the first solicitor wishes to communicate, except with that solicitor’s consent –mother already represented by solicitors - unprofessional, improper and unacceptable for her to have been directly served with papers in relation to the proposed application - series of complaints in relation to the agency’s handling of this matter - not replied to - male social worker remained in the access room while they were having access - alleged instruction not to breast-feed - alleged direction that she was not to record interactions with the agency - alleged requirement to sign an agreement with social workers - agreement not to pursue the breast-feeding and recording issues - abuse of power to direct her to sign an agreement or to be silent as to complaint - application for care order to commence during currency of existing care order - reinforce or supplement the defence to the appeal in the habeas corpus proceedings - question of supplementing the defence of habeas corpus proceedings in the course of the currency of those proceedings - agency should not be permitted to take steps to replace the currently live order on which it has relied in its certificate, during the lifetime of that order, without prior leave of an appropriate court - at least arguable that it is inappropriate for it to take steps now which can only be intended to supplement its defence of the habeas corpus application - pointless and inappropriate to have two concurrent care orders – mootness - rights of the child.