Disputes between parents about where a child should live commonly arise. The place of residence of a child is what is known as a guardianship decision.

The way in which the Family Court deals with applications to do with the parenting of children has changed dramatically. Most significantly there are changes to how certain applications are made to the court, how parties are represented by their legal counsel and the format of documents filed.

The father and mother of a child are usually joint guardians of the child under Section 17 of the Care of Children Act 2004 ('the Act'). Under s15 of the Act guardianship of a child is defined as all duties, powers, rights, and responsibilities that a parent of a child has in relation to the child.

The Child and Family Protection Bill was unanimously passed into law in August this year and focuses onkeeping children safe where there have been instances of family violence in the home.