Claire Anne McFadden

Claire Anne is the leading solicitor in Scotland for litigation in Adoption, Permanence and Family and Child Law. She has been a partner at JK Cameron since 2003 and has overseen the expansion of the firm to meet the demands of an ever increasing client base.

Expertise

Claire Anne has secured over 2000 adoption orders in over 20 years of specialising in this area. She has successfully conducted over 400 contested adoption cases, preferring to personally conduct court proceedings in the most contentious and complex cases in the Sheriff Court, often against multiple opponents. She has established an enviable reputation in relation to her ability to identify the pertinent legal and factual issues in a case and to ensure expediency of time and cost. She is particularly sought after to provide trouble shooting representation to local authorities and adoption agencies for the most difficult of cases and is recognised for her approachable and supportive manner to clients and agency partners.

 

Experience

• Successful outcomes for all of her contested and uncontested Adoption and Permanence cases, many requiring robust responses to the comprehensive scrutiny of social work practice, ECHR law, government policy, regulations and case law from those opposing adoption applications, permanence order cases and kinship care cases.
• Along with her team, Claire Anne is instructed in more than half of all direct adoption cases in Scotland each year, working directly with adopters, social workers and legal services solicitors and the courts in numerous domestic and cross border applications. This has enabled Claire Anne to build an expertise in providing feedback and training on learning issues for Adoption Agencies, Social Work Departments and Legal Services Departments.
• Principal solicitor in the case of RG v Glasgow City Council [2019] CSIH 45 XA50/19, developing the law and practice in relation to facts already established by the court in respect of children.
• Claire Anne has acted for Glasgow City Council, The City of Edinburgh Council, East Dunbartonshire, Inverclyde, Perth and Kinross, Aberdeen City, Clackmannanshire Council in numerous Permanence Order and Permanence Order with Authority to Adopt cases in both the Sheriff Court and Court of Session.
• Principal solicitor on S v L [2012] UKSC30, the leading authority from the Supreme Court in matters of Permanence, Adoption and ECHR in Scotland. She conducted the original proof to successful outcomes at the Sheriff Court, on appeal to the Court of Session and thereafter overseeing the successful outcome at the Supreme Court.
• Claire Anne was appointed as an expert in Scottish Adoption and Permanence Law by the High Court in London and gave evidence on these areas of law in practice at the High Court in relation to a contentious cross border adoption application reported as the case of Re Z [2002] EWHC 2404 (FAM).
• Regularly conducts divorce and separation cases involving financial provision, residence and contact orders on behalf of clients whose relationships come to an end, protecting their rights and preserving their property and ensuring that a child welfare approach is maintained in relation to all issues concerning contact and residence proceedings at court.
• Claire Anne is frequently instructed by numerous Local Authorities, Adoption Agencies and other partner organisations (eg NHS, CHS, Barnardos, St Margaret’s, AFA) across Scotland to present specialised training to legal and social work departments, and other agency partners, on the developments within social work practice, case law and on evidence giving / report writing. She is also a member of AFA Legal Group.

 

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