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Western Australia - Legislation

Adoption of Children Act Amendment Act 1971 (1972 - 1995)

  • Adoption of Children Act Amendment Act, 1971

    Adoption of Children Act Amendment Act, 1971, 1 December 1971, courtesy of State Law Publisher of Western Australia.
    Details

From
1972
To
1995
Categories
Amending Act
Website
https://www.legislation.wa.gov.au/legislation/statutes.nsf/law_a146012.html

The Adoption of Children Act Amendment Act 1971 ( Act no. 024 of 1971) came into operation on 1 July 1972.

Details

The Adoption of Children Act Amendment Act included a number of changes to the Act and the Rules:

  • A new section stated that the 'welfare and interest of the child shall be regarded as the paramount consideration' in adoption
  • The desirability of 'husband and wife' adoptions was emphasised, but some of the restrictions imposed on single applicants were removed
  • The criteria which would be used to judge the suitability of applicants were clarified
  • The duties and responsibilities of the Director for child welfare were outlined, and included the Director to inform the court that an applicant was a suitable person to adopt
  • To fit with other WA legislation, the age of majority was reduced to 18 years
  • Adopted children were able to inherit in the same way as 'natural' children in the family
  • Ministers and departmental staff were expressly exempted from any personal liability arising from carrying out their duties (in good faith) under the Act

In writing a report about the suitability of applicants to adopt children, the Director of child welfare was to take into account a number of factors, plus 'any other matter' or 'any special reasons' that were deemed relevant. An assessment was to be made of the applicant's:

  • Age and health, including results of x-rays if these were ordered (it was a longstanding fear in WA that children might inadvertently be adopted by people with tuberculosis, and chest x-rays were often required)
  • Assets, liabilities and financial standing
  • Personal reputation
  • Housing
  • Ability to have children
  • Size of family and family 'stability'
  • 'Personal maturity and ability to give love and care to a child'

Publications

Online Resources

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Adoption of Children Act Amendment Act, 1971
Title
Adoption of Children Act Amendment Act, 1971
Type
Document
Date
1 December 1971
Source
State Law Publisher of Western Australia

Details

Sources used to compile this entry: 'Western Australian Government Gazette No. 47', in Western Australian Government Gazette Online Archive, State Law Publisher of Western Australia, 21 June 1972, https://www.legislation.wa.gov.au/legislation/prod/gazettestore.nsf/FileURL/gg1972_047.pdf/$FILE/Gg1972_047.pdf?OpenElement; 'Western Australian Government Gazette No. 48', in Western Australian Government Gazette Online Archive, State Law Publisher of Western Australia, 23 June 1972, https://www.legislation.wa.gov.au/legislation/prod/gazettestore.nsf/FileURL/gg1972_048.pdf/$FILE/Gg1972_048.pdf?OpenElement; Law Reform Commission of Western Australia, Succession Rights of Adopted Children, 30th anniversary reform implementation report : Law Reform Commission of Western Australia, 1972-2002, The Commission, Perth, 2002, 78 pp, https://www.wa.gov.au/system/files/2021-02/30-anniversary-reform-implementation-report.pdf; History of Adoption Project: Western Australian Holdings [website], 2011, http://artsonline.monash.edu.au/historyofadoption/; Western Australia. Department for Community Development, ROADS. An index of locations and access to adoption records., with Adoption Service, Department for Community Development, Dept. For Community Development, 2005, https://web.archive.org/web/20110327071024/http://www.dcp.wa.gov.au/FosteringandAdoption/Documents/ROADS2006.pdf; Law Research Service, Melbourne Law School, Law Library, The University of Melbourne. 'Find and Connect Project - Western Australia Legislation', 13 December 2013, held in the project files at the University of Melbourne eScholarship Research Centre.

Prepared by: Debra Rosser