Att höra ett barn : Ett rättsvetenskapligt arbete om barnets vilja i vårdnadsrelaterade tvister

In accordance with UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, the Swedish paternal law stipulates that the best interests of a child should be decisive in all decisions regarding custody. In order to determine what the best interests for the child is, an overall evaluation must take place, where statutory circumstanc- es and the child's own will should be regarded. However, the court must take the child’s will into account with regard to the child’s age and maturity. The court’s obligation to consider a child’s will is also protected by article 12 in the convention which ensures children’s right to express their opinion. the convention can stronger protection of the right for children. The child’s right to express their opinion includes a right to be heard. In cus- tody cases, it is the social welfare committee's task to investigates the child's will within a custody investigation. However, there is no requirement to obtain custody investigations in custody cases. Which means that the absolute right to be heard cannot be fulfilled in accordance with the convention. The child’s right to express their opinion also includes a right to have their will take into account. In the preparatory materials it is said that if a child has a specific desire in the custody issue and has reached such an age that it should be respected, the court should generally follow the child's desire. However, analyzed custody verdicts shows that there is no coherence regarding when children have reached such an age and maturity. The courts estimates the im- portant of the child's will in relation to other circumstances in the case. It is also shown that younger children's opinion is rarely taken into account and that not all older children do get their will considered. The review has shown that there is in the application of the law, a lack of a child-rights-based approach which an incorporating of the convention could remediate. On the other hand there is a clear interaction between the child's right to protection and the child's right to autonomy even in the convention. The child’s right to express their opinion in the custody process will remain conditional on the basis that a custody investigation is obtained and that the custodian allows the child's will to be investigated. The incorporation will not remedy the fact that there is no consensus on how children's will is valued in the courts assessment of the child's best interests. Thus, a legal change is re- quired regarding how the child's will should be taken into account