Adults and Children in Postmodern Societies

Adults and Children in Postmodern Societies provides a critical analysis of the different ways in which the law can recognise and protect relationships between adults and children in postmodern societies which are characterised by increas-ingly diverse family configurations. The book focuses of six fundamental ques-tions:*How does the law deal with the changes occurring in what is still re-ferred to as the `traditional' family, such as for example anonymous childbirth, paternity disputes, shared custody?*How does the law recognise and protect families conceived with help of assisted reproduction techniques, such as IVF, surrogacy, anonymous or non-anonymous gamete donation?*How does the law recognise and protect families bound by de facto so-cial or emotional ties, particularly in context of step-parents and step-children or foster families?*Which relationships between adults and children should be recognised and protected by law? Should there be restrictions based on couple sta-tus, gender or number?*If relationships between adults and children should be protected, which legal tools should be used: legal rules, judicial discretion or contractual freedom?*Which common analytical framework could be used to understand - and face - the legal challenges raised by the transformations of family relationships?These questions are addressed in-depth by an international team of distin-guished family law experts of 19 different jurisdictions (Algeria, Argentina, Australia, Belgium, Canada, Democratic Republic of the Congo, England and Wales, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Lithuania, the Nether-lands, Romania, Spain, Switzerland, Sweden and the USA), covering the current state of affairs, foreseeable legal developments and thought-provoking reflections. The legal perspective of the national reports is com-plemented by interdisciplinary perspectives from experts in history, anthro-pology, psychology and philosophy, making this book a unique and essen-tial source for anyone working in the field.