Do not make children into evidence

Do not make children into evidence

Not making children into evidence concerns a typical question of Swiss family and procedural law. For the legal assessment, what matters are not catchwords or personal attributions, but the established facts, the relevant legal basis and the concrete effects of the measure applied for or ordered.

Courts must distinguish between party submissions, documented facts, evidence and their own findings. An application does not, by itself, prove the factual prerequisites it asserts. Conversely, a relevant, substantiated fact must not be disregarded solely because it was submitted by a party.

In family law, the child’s best interests are central in matters concerning children. At the same time, procedural guarantees such as the right to be heard, access to files, a reasoned justification and an appropriate assessment of the evidence apply. Interventions must be suitable, necessary and proportionate.

A good legal record therefore specifies the date, document type, author or official role, the content of the specific action and its procedural status. It avoids motives that are not substantiated, and explicitly indicates whether something is a party's allegation, an authority's action, a judicial finding or an editorial classification.

It is regularly crucial for affected persons to keep a complete chronology, to retain filings and served documents, and to ensure that applications are clear. Where the situation changes, it must be examined whether new facts can still be introduced in the ongoing proceedings and which legal remedies are available.

Further articles

Editorial specialist article. Not individual legal advice. Prior to publication, the status of legislation and case law as well as the sources must be reviewed again.