Parental Rights & Responsibilities

When it comes to divorce, the welfare of your children is of the utmost importance. If you're thinking about divorce, then you should be considering what the legal implications are. A child,in Scotland is a person under the age of 16.

An important term you should be aware of is 'Parental rights and responsibilities' (known as PRR's). These are defined in legal statute the Children (Scotland) Act 1995. These have the  aim of providing parents with certain rights which will enable them to carry out their responsibilities.

Who has Parental Responsibilities and Rights? (PRR's)

Provided they register the child's birth together, both mother and father are given PRR's automatically. This is a resulty of relatively recent changes to the Family Law (Scotland) Act 2006.  For children born before the Family Law (Scotland) Act 2006 came into force and if the child's mum and dad were married to one another (or got married later) then both parents were given PRR's. If a child's mum and dad were not married, then only the mum was given PRR's, but as a result of the new act a dad can apply for PRR's.

Other people not covered by the above may apply to the courts for PPR's, who will determine their eligability based on family law.

If this is an issue affecting you and you would potentially like legal advice call us on 01382 234 348 or fill out our online enquiry form. Alternatively email us at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it