Revised Laws of Saint Lucia (2021)

2.   Interpretation

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   (1)   In this Act —

“abuse” includes —

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   (a)     physical abuse;

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   (b)     sexual abuse;

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   (c)     verbal abuse;

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   (d)     emotional abuse;

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   (e)     psychological abuse; and

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   (f)     financial abuse;

“adopted child” means a child with respect to whom an adoption order under section 107 is made;

“Adoption Committee” means the Adoption Committee established under section 73;

“Adoption List” means the list prepared and maintained under section 87;

“adoptive parent” means a person who has adopted a child;

“alternative action plan” means an arrangement —

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   (a)     that sets out the way in which the needs of the child are proposed to be met, having regard to the breakdown in the relationship between the child and his or her parents; and

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   (b)     that includes a proposal concerning —

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      (i)     allocation of parental responsibility or specific aspects of parental responsibility,

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      (ii)     a residential arrangement,

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      (iii)     supervision,

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      (iv)     a contact arrangement,

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      (v)     education and training,

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      (vi)     medical care, or

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      (vii)     provision of a service;

“assessment order” means an order made under section 40;

“attorney-at-law” means a person who is admitted to practise law under the Legal Profession Act;

“authorized person” means —

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   (a)     a health practitioner registered under the Health Practitioners Act;

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   (b)     a nurse registered under the Registration of Nurses and Midwives Act;

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   (c)     an administrator of a health, medical or hospital facility;

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   (d)     a school principal, teacher, guidance counsellor or other teaching professional;

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   (e)     an owner, operator or employee of a child care service;

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   (f)     a psychologist or physiologist;

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   (g)     a minister of religion;

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   (h)     a parent or guardian;

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   (i)     a person who by virtue of his or her employment or occupation has a responsibility to discharge a duty of care towards a child;

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   (j)     a person who holds a management position in an organization, the duties of which include direct responsibility for, or direct supervision of, the provision of health care, welfare services, social services, education, child care services, law enforcement, legal, transportation or other services wholly or partly to children; and

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   (k)     a person who provides health care, welfare services, social services, education, child care services, law enforcement, legal or other services wholly or partly to children;

“biological father” means a man who is the father of a child by blood;

“biological mother” means a woman who is the mother of a child —

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   (a)     by blood; or

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   (b)     as a result of an artificial conception procedure;

“biological parent” means the mother or father of a child by blood;

“care application” means an application for a care order under section 24;

“care and protection order” means an order made under section 30;

“care order” means —

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   (a)     a care and protection order;

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   (b)     an emergency protection order;

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   (c)     an assessment order;

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   (d)     a supervision order; or

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   (e)     a contact order;

“care plan” means a plan made by the Director for —

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   (a)     the consideration of the Court under section 26; or

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   (b)     the consideration of a child's parent, relative, friend or other person connected with the child under section 119;

“care responsibility” means the authority of a person to exercise the functions specified under section 36 in relation to a child;

“child” means a person who is under the age of eighteen years;

“child care service” means a child care service designated by the Minister under section 5(1);

“consent” means the permission given unconditionally and with full understanding of what is involved;

“contact order” means an order made under section 49;

“couple” means a man and a woman —

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   (a)     who are married to each other; or

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   (b)     who are not married to each other, but are cohabiting;

“Court” means a District Court;

“custody” means the legal authority and responsibility for physically possessing a child and providing for the normal daily requirements related to the care and development of the child;

“Director” means a person appointed by the Public Service Commission as Director of Human Services within the Division;

“Division” means the Division responsible for human services;

“domestic violence” means an act of violence whether physical, emotional or verbal abuse perpetrated by a member of a household on a member of the same household which causes or is likely to cause physical, mental or emotional injury or harm to the abused party or another member of the household;

“emergency protection order” means an order made under section 34;

“emotional abuse”, in relation to a child, means the child —

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   (a)     has suffered, is suffering or is likely to suffer in a way that has caused, is causing or is likely to cause harm to his or her well-being or development; or

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   (b)     is being or is likely to be exposed to domestic violence and the exposure is causing or is likely to cause harm to the psychological, emotional well-being or development of the child;

“financial abuse”, in relation to a child, includes a pattern of behaviour, the purpose of which is to exercise coercive control over, or exploit or limit a child's access to financial resources so as to ensure financial dependence or defrauding a child of goods or property;

“foster care” means the temporary care provided by a foster parent, to a child who has been removed from his or her home by the Division, to ensure the safety and well-being of that child;

“foster child” means a child to whom foster care is provided;

“foster parent” means a person approved by the Director under section 66 to provide foster care to a child;

“guardian” in relation to a child, means a person who has been appointed by deed or will, or by order of a court of competent jurisdiction, with guardianship, to care for the personal or property interests of a child and includes a tutor appointed under the Civil Code;

“guardianship” means the legal responsibility and authority for making decisions with respect to a child;

“home study assessment” means an assessment conducted by the Division and approved by the Adoption Committee on a person who makes an application under section 82;

“Minister” means the Minister responsible for human services;

“neglect” means the failure of a parent or guardian to provide a child with adequate care and guidance or an act or omission by the parent or guardian with respect to that child that is not in the best interest of the child or likely to be harmful to the child;

“parent” includes —

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   (a)     a biological parent or adoptive parent who has parental responsibility for a child;

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   (b)     a person who has stood in loco parentis to a child for a period of not less than one year and who has a continuing relationship with the child; or

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   (c)     a guardian of the child who has custody or guardianship rights for the child;

“parental responsibility” means the duties, powers, rights, responsibilities and authority which by law, a parent of a child has in relation to that child;

“permanency”, in relation to a child, means the discharge of a child from a child care service to be reunified or adopted;

“physical abuse” means the intentional non-accidental use of bodily force by a person aimed at hurting, causing bodily harm or injuring a child;

“placement” means removing a child from his or her home and putting him or her in the care of a prospective adoptive parent or in the care of a child care service;

“police officer” means a member of the Royal Saint Lucia Police Force;

“prescribed” means prescribed by Regulations made under section 124;

“prospective adoptive parent” means a person approved by the Adoption Committee under section 84;

“Register of Adoptions” means a Register of Civil Status referred to under section 6(1) of the Civil Status Act;

“Register of Births” means a Register of Civil Status referred to under section 6(1) of the Civil Status Act;

“Registrar” means the Registrar of Civil Status appointed under section 4 of the Civil Status Act;

“relative” in relation to a child, means a parent, grandparent, brother, sister, uncle or aunt of the child, whether the relationship is by blood, affinity or adoption;

“removal” means taking of a child and placing the child in the care and protection of the Director under this Act or taking a child from previously approved placement;

“repealed Act” means the Adoption Act;

“request for assistance” means a request for assistance under section 10;

“resident” means a person who is domiciled in Saint Lucia;

“reunification” means the return of a child to his or her family home;

“sexual abuse”, in relation to a child, includes the sexual exploitation of a child, molestation of a child, or the involvement of a child in unlawful sexual activity, prostitution or pornography;

“supervision order” means an order made under section 44;

“supervisor” includes the Director and a person appointed by the Director under section 24;

“verbal abuse”, in relation to a child, includes a negative defining statement of a child to him or her, or a statement of disapproval which is likely to cause emotional harm to the child.

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   (2)   In this Act, a reference to the best interest of a child includes a reference to —

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      (a)     the safety of the child;

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      (b)     the capacity of the parent of the child to properly discharge his or her parental responsibilities with respect to the child;

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      (c)     the physical, mental and emotional needs of the child, and the appropriate care or treatment required to meet those needs;

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      (d)     the physical, mental, emotional or psychological development of the child;

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      (e)     where appropriate, the views of the child;

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      (f)     the need to provide a secure place for the child and the development of a positive relationship as a member of a family;

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      (g)     the love, affection and ties between the child and other persons in the life of the child;

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      (h)     the capacity of a person other than a parent to exercise custody rights and duties respecting the child;

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      (i)     the continuity of the care for the child and the possible effect of disruption of that care on the child;

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      (j)     a disability which the child may have;

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      (k)     the wishes expressed by one or both parents of the child;

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      (l)     the relationship that the child has with his or her biological parents or siblings, if any and a significant other person including a relative if this is considered to be relevant;

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      (m)     the physical, emotional and educational needs of the child, including the child's sense of personal, family and cultural identity;

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      (n)     the child's age, maturity, level of understanding, gender, background and family relationships and other characteristics of the child, if this is considered to be relevant;

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      (o)     the attitude of a person wishing to adopt the child towards the child and to parental responsibilities;

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      (p)     the nature of the relationship of the child with the person wishing to adopt the child;

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      (q)     the suitability and capacity of the person wishing to adopt the child, to provide for the needs of the child, including the child's emotional and intellectual needs;

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      (r)     the need to protect the child from abuse;

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      (s)     a wish expressed by the child;

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      (t)     the likely effect on the child throughout his or her life of having ceased to be a member of his or her biological or original family and become an adopted child;

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      (u)     harm which the child has suffered or is at risk of suffering;

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      (v)     the likely prejudicial effect in the delay in arriving at a decision relating to a child; and

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      (w)     the making of an adoption order in determining alternative forms of care to best meet the needs of the child.

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   (3)   In this Act, a child is in need of care and protection if the child —

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      (a)     has suffered harm or is likely to suffer harm caused by —

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         (i)     the neglect of the child,

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         (ii)     the failure of the child's parent to adequately supervise or protect the child, or

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         (iii)     the failure of the child's parent to provide for the adequate supervision or protection of the child;

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      (b)     has been abused or is likely to be abused by his or her parent or by another person and the parent knew or ought to have known of the possibility of the abuse of the child and the parent failed to protect the child;

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      (c)     has been harmed or is likely to be harmed as a result of sexual abuse and the parent has failed or has not been able to protect the child;

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      (d)     has suffered or is likely to suffer as a result of being exposed to domestic violence by or towards a parent or other person residing with the child;

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      (e)     requires specific medical, physical, emotional or psychological treatment to cure, prevent or ameliorate the effects of physical abuse or emotional abuse suffered, and the parent does not, or refuses to obtain treatment or is unavailable or unwilling to consent to services for treatment to remedy or to ameliorate the effects of the abuse;

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      (f)     has been abandoned, or is likely to be abandoned or the only parent of the child has died or is unavailable, unwilling to take custody of the child, and adequate provisions have not been made for the care of the child;

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      (g)     suffers or is likely to suffer from a mental, emotional, physical or developmental condition, that, if not addressed, could seriously harm the child and the parent does not, or refuses to obtain treatment or is unavailable, unwilling or unable to consent to services or treatment to remedy or ameliorate the effects of the condition;

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      (h)     is beyond the control of his or her parent or guardian;

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      (i)     is destitute or wanders without a settled place of abode and without visible means of subsistence;

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      (j)     begs or receives alms;

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      (k)     frequents the company of a person of undesirable character;

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      (l)     is in the custody of the Director, a child care service or another person and the parent of the child refuses or is unable to resume custody of the child; or

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      (m)     has a parent or guardian who is by —

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         (i)     reason of mental or bodily disease,

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         (ii)     infirmity or other capacity, or

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         (iii)     other circumstances,

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           prevented from providing for the child's up-bringing, and there is no available person capable, fit or willing to undertake the care of the child.