Kerry O'Halloran - a professionally qualified lawyer, social worker and academic - has recently retired from 13 years as an adjunct professor at the Australian Centre for Philanthropy and Nonprofit Studies at QUT, Brisbane. In Northern Ireland, he served on the Social Care Tribunal and on an HSS Trust adoption panel, has advised the Irish government on law reform matters, and has served in a consultancy capacity on government bodies such as Courts Services (Northern Ireland) and to the Open University in England. Previously employed as Assistant Director (Research) at the Centre for Voluntary Action, University of Ulster in Northern Ireland, his 30 books and many other publications include Conscientious Objection (Springer, 2022), The Politics of Adoption, 4th ed. (Springer, 2021), Adoption Law and Human Rights: International Perspectives (Routledge, 2018), Religion, Charity and Human Rights (CUP, 2014) and Child Care and Protection: The Law & Practice in Northern Ireland (Thomson Reuters, 2003).

Dedication

Acknowledgments

Introduction

Part I

Background

Chap 1 Concepts, Constructs & Cultural Context

Part II

United States of America

Chap 2 Policy, principles, legislation and courts

Chap 3 The welfare principle in contemporary practice: public family law; civil

and criminal jurisdictions

Chap 4 The welfare principle in contemporary practice: private family law and

hybrid proceedings

Part III

Canada

Chap 5 Policy, principles, legislation and courts

Chap 6The welfare principle in contemporary practice: public family law; civil

and criminal jurisdictions

Chap 7 The welfare principle in contemporary practice: private family law and

hybrid proceedings

Part IV

The Indigenous Children of North America

Chap 8 Americans/Indians and the First Nations/Inuit

Part V

Themes of Commonality and Difference

Chap 9 Themes and a comparative jurisdictional analysis

Conclusion

Select Bibliography

Index