How old is a child legally

If you are thinking about getting body or facial piercings take a look at the information on the Kids Help Phone website. If you need legal advice consult a lawyer. Search form Search. Look up any legal term in our handy legal dictionary. Age Based Rights. Babysitting There is no law that says when you are old enough to babysit. In deciding if they should hire you as a babysitter, a parent might consider: - your age and how mature you are maturity - how many children they have and how old they are - what babysitting experience you have - how long you will be babysitting - whether there are adults nearby to call in case of an emergency.

Getting Married People 19 years old or older can get married without permission. Committing a Crime The first time a young person 12 to 17 years does something wrong, he or she will not usually have to go to court. Tattoos and Piercing There is no law in BC that says how old you have to be get tattoos or body piercings. Was this helpful? Yes No. BC Human Rights Tribunal. If you believe that you have been a victim of discrimination, this page will help you to file a complaint with the BC Human Rights Tribunal.

Legal Rights For Youth. This online resource contains information for youth seeking to better understand their legal rights. Need Legal Help? We took on Hughes's case and helped him to challenge this in court. Thanks to Hughes's strength and derermination, the law was overturned, and year-olds now have the right to an appropriate adult in the police station.

Handing down judgment in the case, Lord Justice Moses said that it was "difficult to imagine a more striking case where the rights of both child and parent under article 8 [of the European convention on human rights, guaranteeing family life] are engaged than when a child is in custody on suspicion of committing a serious offence and needs help from someone with whom he is familiar and whom he trusts in redressing the imbalance between child and authority.

What happened next? Thanks to this successful case, year-olds now have the right to appropriate adults when questioned in the police station. There is however, still work to be done to ensure that year-olds have access to the same rights as other children in the criminal justice system. As part of our youth justice campaigning work , we are researching the situation for year-olds who turn 18 while involved in an ongoing criminal case, and we are also challenging the Home Office in court over its failure to provide 16 and year-olds with safeguards - including access to appropriate adults - when they are used as covert informants by police and other agencies.

We will continue to campaign for the right of year-olds to be recognised for what they are: children. Death of Kesia Leatherbarrow is third suicide in three years linked to failures to treat 17 year olds in police station as children. This section gives you information on the child-related legal issues people most commonly contact us about. If you want to know about age thresholds - from what age you can leave a child at home unsupervised, to the age at which a child can be charged with committing a crime - this page has the answers.

You can also find out how to stop a child being taken from the country or how to seek their return, and where to get advice about the Family Court. For more information see the Community Law Manual. If you think your child is going to be taken out of New Zealand in breach of a parenting order, you can ask the High Court, the District Court or the Family Court to stop them being taken.

You can also do this if you've applied for a parenting order or are about to apply for one. You can find out more on the Ministry of Justice website. This means if you contact us about an issue with the Family Court, we can only let you know about the other support agencies you can contact. If you need advice on the Family Court, you can talk with your lawyer or the family court co-ordinator, or visit the Family Court website. Legal aid is government funding to pay for a lawyer for people who cannot afford one, and need one in the interests of justice.

People who get legal aid may have to repay part or all of their legal aid costs. You may have to repay some or all of your legal aid, depending on how much you earn, what property you own and whether you receive any money or property as a result of your case. If you are concerned about your legal aid repayments or your legal aid debt, call the Ministry of Justice legal aid Debt Management Group on