Care & Protection
7. Important Evidence
Authors: Staff Legal Eagle
Firm / Chambers:
Last updated: 29 Jun 2015
- Evidence is presented to the court in an affidavit. An affidavit is a sworn statement with numbered paragraphs outlining the relevant facts from the point of view of the person who makes the affidavit. It may have annexures that are attached copies of documents referred to in the affidavit.
- The department is required to write an affidavit to support their application and file this with the court. A copy will be served (posted) to you or your lawyer if you have one.
- Each party can also write an affidavit to tell the court their side of the story.
- The court will want to know what steps you have taken to address the concerns raised by your caseworker. For example if your caseworker has concerns about your ongoing substance abuse you will need to show the court evidence of what you have done to make changes to address this issue. Examples include a letter from a rehabilitation centre or drug and alcohol counsellor confirming your involvement with their program.
- A good way to start preparing your evidence is to read the department’s affidavit. Write down whether or not you ‘agree’ or ‘disagree’ with each of the statements next to each numbered paragraph. If you ‘disagree’ also write a short explanation stating your version of the facts. This will help you when instructing your lawyer to prepare your affidavit.
- Your lawyer will listen to your story and write your affidavit for you. They will then file it with the court and serve (post) a copy to all the parties.
- You should be given a chance to read all the affidavits that are filed in your case. You can then give your lawyer instructions about which evidence you agree or disagree with and why.
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