An unnamed hospital and health service brought an application for legal orders to terminate the pregnancy of a child, referred to as ‘C’. The service said the girl had some understanding of her pregnancy, but there was concern as to whether it was only a superficial understanding. In her decision, the judge said she concluded it was in the girl’s “best interests” to allow her to have the termination, after weighing up her “physical, psychological and social circumstances”.
Under the local law, a child is capable of giving informed consent when they achieve a “sufficient understanding and intelligence to enable him or her to understand fully what is proposed”. If the child is not “competent” to give consent to the termination of a pregnancy, this article states, there is a risk the medical procedure “may be an assault or trespass to the person and unlawful in the absence of a court making appropriate orders,” according to the court.
However, the article goes on to state: “The court heard the girl has “repeatedly” expressed the view that she does not want to continue with the pregnancy. Her mother’s preference was also for her daughter to undergo a termination.” In what way does this not make it clear the girl does understand? The article does not, however, address this question.
The article goes on to say: “There was medical evidence that continuing the pregnancy poses significant risks to the [girl’s] short and long-term physical, mental and psychosocial wellbeing,” the decision said. “The overwhelming medical evidence is that the risks involved in continuing C’s pregnancy are higher than the risks involved in termination,” the decision said.
This is the second time an article from Australia about a young girl reports that the risks of the abortion have to be taken into account, as well as “the physical risk to the [child] by continuing with the pregnancy; and the increased mental or psychological risks of continuing with the pregnancy”.
Apparently, the decision to allow the abortion was made in April but was only released in August. Why this delay happened was not stated.
SOURCE: ABC.NET.AU, 19 August 2025.