A voz da criança na decisão judicial
Participação da criança na justiça protetiva e de família
DOI :
https://doi.org/10.23882/rmd.26319Mots-clés :
audição da criança, decisão judicial, justiça de família, justiça protetiva, participação da criançaRésumé
O presente estudo abordou o contexto da participação da criança na justiça protetiva e de família em Portugal. Focámo-nos na forma como os conceitos de superior interesse e maturidade da criança são compreendidos e avaliados pelo tribunal, na forma como a opinião da criança é considerada na decisão judicial e nas práticas adotadas para garantir a livre expressão da criança. As entrevistas semiestruturadas realizadas a 5 juízes e 3 procuradores em exercício de funções num tribunal de família foram analisadas com análise de conteúdo. Os resultados mostraram que, ao considerar a opinião da criança, aqueles conceitos são centrais e que o tipo de procedimento judicial usado na audição da criança é um importante fator na ponderação da sua opinião; as práticas adotadas pelos profissionais durante a audição visam influenciar positivamente as experiências das crianças e, consequentemente, promover melhores decisões judiciais. As limitações do estudo e questões relacionadas são discutidas, apontando para futuras pesquisas nessas áreas específicas da justiça. O estudo contribui para clarificar a concretização do Artigo 12.º da Convenção sobre os Direitos da Criança na justiça portuguesa, na jurisdição de família e menores.
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