Determining the best interests of the child during the consideration of civil cases related to with the upbringing of the child
Authors: Stupak Olha 
Published: December 2024

The article is devoted to the disclosure of scientific and applied aspects of the procedure for determining the best interests of a child by courts in civil cases related to child-rearing. Results of the research. It is determined that the obligation to bring up a child is imposed on parents and consists in the implementation of a system of educational measures aimed at forming a fully and harmoniously developed personality. It is substantiated that sometimes, in the process of raising a child, divorced parents cannot agree on certain aspects of a joint approach to upbringing. It is not uncommon for one of the parents to demonstrate a state of concern (or indeed to be in such a state) about the possible negative impact on the child by the other parent, and therefore may initiate a claim to change the manner of participation in the child's upbringing determined by a court decision.

It is proved that a father and mother have equal rights and obligations and when deciding on the frequency of visits, the possibility of joint recreation, and visits to the place of residence of the parent with whom the child does not live, one should proceed solely from the interests of the child. In certain cases, if it is in the child's best interests, the court may condition visits with the child on the presence of another person, maintaining a reasonable balance between the participation of both parents in the child's upbringing. The right of a father to communicate with his child is his indisputable right, and communication between a minor child and his father is in his best interests. In the absence of a stable psychological connection between the father and the child, the child may not fully perceive him as a father, and meetings between the father and the child without the mother's presence may negatively affect the child's psycho-emotional state. It takes time to establish a trusting relationship between a father and a child, during which time communication will gradually be established and the daughter's emotional attachment to her father will be formed.

It is stated that the legal regime of martial law has made adjustments to the procedure for consideration of cases in which the best interests of the child are realized and ensured. Cases involving the establishment of the fact of independent upbringing of children are considered both in separate proceedings and in the course of action, depending on the issue to be established by the courts. With regard to the first issue – in particular, cases of establishing the fact that children are fully dependent on one of their parents – the problem has become more relevant with the introduction of the legal regime of martial law in Ukraine.

It is proved that an application for establishing a fact of legal significance is not subject to judicial review in a separate proceeding, since there is a dispute about the right of one of the parents to participate in the upbringing and maintenance of the child. Given the principle of inalienability of family responsibilities in family law and the impossibility of waiving them, including the responsibilities of raising a child, the issue of establishing the fact of independent upbringing of a child cannot be clarified without regard to the actions of the other parent and may be resolved within the framework of a dispute on the right between the child's parents under the general rule in an action.

Key words: best interests of the child, civil proceedings, participation in upbringing, change of upbringing, action proceedings, separate proceedings, establishment of a fact of legal significance.