11EDuty to consider child's best interests when allowing access to information

1

Where the court—

a

is considering making an order under section 11(1), and

b

has to decide whether a person should have access to anything in which private information about a child is recorded,

in making that decision it must comply with subsections (2) and (3) in relation to that child.

2

The court must regard the best interests of the child as a primary consideration.

3

The court must—

a

give the child an opportunity to express the child's views in—

i

the manner that the child prefers, or

ii

a manner that is suitable to the child if the child has not indicated a preference or it would not be reasonable in the circumstances to accommodate the child's preference, and

b

have regard to any views expressed by the child, taking into account the child's age and maturity.

4

But the court is not required to comply with subsection (3) if satisfied that—

a

the child is not capable of forming a view, or

b

the location of the child is not known.

5

The child is to be presumed to be capable of forming a view unless the contrary is shown.

6

In this section, “private information” means information in which the child could have a reasonable expectation of privacy.