Brophy Solicitors Weekly Newsletter

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Brophy Solicitors
Kevin and Laura's Weekly Email
Kevin and Laura's Weekly Email
21st July 2011
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Kevin Brophy & Laura Gillen
Brophy Solicitors,
38-40 Parliament Street,
Dublin 2.
Tel: 01 6797930
Fax: 01 6797954
In This Issue
I am not a Misogynist
but...
Protection and Safety
Orders
I am not a Misogynist but...
I am sure all of you know that the name for a person who hates women is a
misogynist. Maybe all of you will also know that the name for a person who
hates men is a misandrist. When I went around the office a few minutes ago
and asked everybody about these two words, everybody could tell me the
name for a man who hates woman but only one person could tell me the
name for a woman who hates men. It's peculiar isn't it?
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2. News from Brophy Solicitors Page 2 of 5
This leads me on to the sorry story of two male clients I have at the
moment. I should start with the statement that "I am not a misogynist
but....". Normally when somebody says to me "I am not a racist but...." then
I know they are about to come out with something extraordinarily racist.
However, I am not a misogynist but... I have two male clients at the moment
who are unmarried fathers of two very young children. In both cases there
are court orders, which specifically grant the fathers an entitlement to bring
their child out of the country on holiday each summer. In both cases the
order has been entirely ignored and in one of the cases the mother has
brought her little girl abroad during the exact period when my client, under
court order, was to bring his daughter away on holiday.
In both cases the father has come to me enormously upset, asking what
could I do for them. In my mind I am thinking that if a father did this, there
would be a very real risk that he would be sent to prison. Given that the
mother has taken this action there is a very real risk that she will be given a
very firm slap on the wrist and told not to do this again. Over the years, I
have had dozens of cases where mothers quite blatantly ignore access orders
knowing that nothing will happen to them other than a stern lecture. I do not
believe the answer is to send these mothers to prison because if we did there
would be a very large extension required on Mountjoy Women's Prison.
There must however be equal treatment between the sexes and if a woman
blatantly ignores and breaches a court order, she must feel that there will be
a severe penalty for such a blatant breach particularly in circumstances
where no family law case is ever heard without a judge uttering the words "I
am not interested in the mother and the father and their problems, I want to
arrive at a situation which is in the best interests of this innocent child".
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So I'll say again I am not a misogynist but... I really, really, really hate the
way a certain number of women flout the law and damage their innocent
children in this way.
Kevin Brophy
kevin@brophysolicitors.ie
Protection and Safety Orders
I often get questions from clients asking what is the difference between
Protection and Safety Orders. We hear so much about Barring Orders but
very little about other remedies available. Both a Protection and Safety
Order are granted under the Domestic Violence Act, 1996. The aim of the
Act is to protect spouses, children, dependant persons and other persons in
other domestic relationships where their safety and welfare is at risk
because of the conduct of the other person (the respondent).
SAFETY ORDERS
This remedy brought in by the 1996 Act is effectively a long-term
"protection order", it does not put the respondent out of the home but it
prohibits the respondent from using or threatening to use violence against
the applicant, molesting or putting in fear the applicant. If the respondent is
not residing in the same residence as the applicant then it can also prohibit
the applicant from watching or besetting the applicants home. A Safety
Order can be made for up to 5 years and applies only to the following
category of persons:-
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4. News from Brophy Solicitors Page 4 of 5
1. spouses;
2. cohabitants for 6 out of the previous 12 months;
3. parent of an adult child;
4. adults residing in non-contractual relationships;
5. the health board on behalf of an adult/ a child;
PROTECTION ORDERS
This is a temporary order given by the courts pending the full hearing of the
Barring Order application and/or the Safety Order application. A protection
order is similar to the safety order in so far as it prohibits the respondent
from using or threatening to use violence against the applicant, molesting or
putting in fear the applicant.
Barring, Protection and Safety Orders are made in the District Court. If you
or someone you know wishes to make any of the above Orders then please
do not hesitate to contact me at laura@brophysolicitors.ie
Laura Gillen
laura@brophysolicitors.ie
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Brophy Solicitors | 38 - 40 Parliament Street | Dublin 2 | Dublin | 2 | Ireland
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