Court may dispense with consents
18 Court may dispense with consents
The Court may dispense with the consent of a person (other than the child) to an adoption where it appears to the Court—
that the person cannot, after reasonable inquiry, be found or identified; or
that the person is in such a physical or mental condition as not to be capable of properly considering the question of consent; or
that the person has abandoned, deserted or persistently neglected or ill-treated the child; or
that there are other circumstances by reason of which the consent may properly be dispensed with.
The Court may dispense with the consent of a child to an adoption where it appears to the Court that the child is intellectually incapable of giving consent.
An application may be made under this section by the Chief
Executive or a party to the adoption (including the child).
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