In family law matters concerning children, the paramount consideration for the Court in making a parenting order is the child’s best interests. In determining this, the Court will often need to make an assessment as to whether a parent suffers from any substance abuse issues such as drug and alcohol addiction which may place a child at risk.

Concerned parents can make an application to the Court for the other parent to be alcohol and/or drug tested. Urine drug analysis tests and blood tests may be of some assistance to the Court as a starting point however hair follicle drug tests (HFDT) and carbohydrate deficient transferrin tests (CDT) are often preferred. This is because the later can allow an assessment to be made as to the level of drug and/or alcohol used by the other parent over a 3 or even 6 month period in certain circumstances.

Once the HFDT or CDT results are returned, the concerned parent can then elect to have these results further analysed by a specialist forensic expert witness to make a more accurate assessment as to the level of the other parents usage over a particular period of time.

This area is complex and parents are often required to seek out expert evidence from highly specialised medical professionals. I have extensive experience in acting for parents in complex family law matters including where substance abuse concerns have been successfully proven but also defended. If you find yourself in a parenting dispute whereby drug or alcohol related risks are to be considered, please do not hesitate to call me on 41916470 to book an appointment.