如果部门认为需要采取行动保护您的孩子，他们可能会带走您的孩子并启动法律诉讼。
如果发生这种情况，有时间限制规定部门何时需要在儿童法院或青少年法院开始案件。关于部门何时可以带走儿童以及适用的时间限制，在每个州和地区都不同。
有时，部门可能会采取法律行动并进入法院，而您的孩子仍在您的照顾之下。
您不必等到案件进入法院才能咨询律师。如果部门介入您的家庭，您应该尽快寻求法律建议。
一旦您的案件进入儿童法院或青少年法院，部门需要向法院证明采取行动（例如带走您的孩子）是必要的，以保护您的孩子或确保他们得到适当照顾。
如果您的案件进入法院，即使您不同意部门介入您家庭的原因，也很重要要尝试与部门合作。请参见与部门合作的建议。
这些命令还可能被称为照顾与保护令、儿童保护令或保护令，具体取决于你所在的州或地区。关于不同类型的监护令，另请参见资源部分。
• 关于谁为孩子的日常生活和重大长期决策做决定的命令，如由谁照顾、居住地、就读学校和接受医疗治疗。这可以由你、另一位父母、部门、其他人（如家庭成员）或这些人的组合决定
• 关于孩子与你、其他家庭成员和其他重要人物接触的命令
• 将孩子交还给你的监护，但由部门对孩子的安全、福利和健康进行'监督'的命令
• 要求你或任何照顾孩子的人向法院作出关于未来行为的承诺（称为'保证'）
• 禁止你或任何照顾孩子的人做某些事情的命令。
法院可以作出临时命令。法院还可以作出最终命令。法院将说明命令的有效期——有时是短期，有时直到孩子年满18岁。
法院将做出的最重要决定之一是是否将孩子送回您的照护。
在做出这个决定时，法院将考虑您是否已解决影响父母能力的问题，以及如果孩子被送回您的照护，他们是否能得到安全和适当的照顾。这可能包括向法院证明孩子返回与您生活时不会遭受家庭暴力。
If the Department decides to remove your child from your care, you may want them to stay with a family member or friend.
That person will need to be a suitable carer and their house will need to be a safe place for your children to live.
The Department can ‘assess’ your family members to see whether they can be approved as your children’s carers. This can sometimes take some time – so it is important that you give the Department the details of anyone in your family who you want to care for your children, as early as possible.
If the Department does not approve that person to be your children’s carer, then it may be up to court to decide who should care for your children. Your family member or friend may need to get legal advice about their options. You should also get legal adviceACTNSWNTQldSATasVicWA.
Even if you hope that your children will be returned to your care at the end of the case, it is usually a good idea to put forward family members who might be able to care for them.
This way your family members can care for your children while the court case is happening, even if your children are returned to your care later. If your children are not returned to your care, sometimes having them live with family can be a good back-up plan.
What about Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children?
When the Department or a court decides where your children should live, the most important consideration is about what is in your children’s best interests.
However, the law also says that when Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander children cannot live with their parents, they should be placed within their own kin, culture and community if this is possible.
Each State and Territory have slightly different laws about how this happens. You can get legal adviceACTNSWNTQldSATasVicWA about what is meant to happen if your children are in care and are Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander.
For more information, also see resources.
如果部门决定将你的孩子带离你的照顾，你可能希望他们能与家人或朋友住在一起。
那个人需要是适合的照顾者，他们的房子也需要是孩子们安全的居住地。
部门可以'评估'你的家庭成员，看看他们是否可以被批准作为孩子的照顾者。这有时可能需要一些时间——所以尽早向部门提供你希望照顾孩子的家人详细信息很重要。
即使你希望孩子最终能回到你的照顾，通常最好提出可能照顾他们的家庭成员。
这样，你的家人可以在法律诉讼期间照顾孩子，即使孩子最终会回到你的照顾。如果孩子没有被送回你的照顾，有时让他们与家人住在一起可能是一个很好的备选方案。
当部门或法院决定孩子的居住地时，最重要的考虑是孩子的最佳利益。
欲了解更多信息，另请参见资源。
- 社区服务– 出庭和重聚家庭：涉及哪些内容以及我能做什么？
- 社区服务 – 自行出庭：我需要了解哪些内容以导航保护法院程序？
- 社区服务 – 当孩子在监护中时会发生什么，我能做什么让他们回家？
- 社区服务 – 为什么儿童保护机构会采取法律行动？
- 澳大利亚首都领地地方法院 – 儿童法院
- Community Services– Going to court and working to reunite families: What’s involved and what can I do?
- Community Services – Representing yourself in court: What do I need to know to navigate care and protection court processes?
- Community Services – What happens with my child when they are in care and what can I do to have them come home?
- Community Services – Why Child Protection take court action?
- Magistrates Court ACT – Children’s Court
- Children’s Court – Care and protection cases
- Children’s Court – Care applications
- Children’s Court – Contact Orders
- Children’s Court – Parent Capacity Orders
- Family and Community Services – Going to the Children’s Court
- Family and Community Services – Removing children and young people
- Family and Community Services – Orders in care and protection matters
- Legal Aid NSW – Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander kids in care
- Legal Aid NSW – Going to the Children’s Court – available in English, Arabic, Bengali, Chinese, Dinka, Kirundi, Swahili, Tamil and Vietnamese
- Legal Aid NSW – What happens when my kids are in care? – available in English, Arabic, Bengali, Chinese, Dari/Farsi, Dinka, Kirundi, Swahili, Thai, Tamil and Vietnamese
- NT Law Handbook – Child Welfare
- NT Legal Aid Commission – Child protection matters
- Legal Aid Qld – Child protection duty lawyer
- Legal Aid Qld – Child protection legal information
- Legal Aid Qld – How will a separate representative help my child in their child protection matter?
- Qld Law Handbook – Child protection
- South West Brisbane CLC – Information kit on child protection for parents
Video
- Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Legal Service – Knowing your rights, child protection
- Legal Services Commission of SA – Child Protection
- SA Law Handbook – Care and Protection Orders
- SA Law Handbook – Child Protection Restraining Orders and other measures
- Courts Administration Authority of SA – Care and protection jurisdiction
- Legal Aid Commission of Tasmania – Child Protection Brochure
- Tasmanian Law Handbook – Care and Protection Orders
- Department of Communities Tasmania – Legal Orders in Child Protection
- Department of Communities Tasmania – Family Group Conference
- Department of Communities Tasmania – Rights of Parents of Children in out of home care
- Department of Communities Tasmania – Brochures on Child Protection
- Child Protection Manual – Going to the Children’s Court for parents – also available in Arabic, Mandarin, Turkish, Vietnamese, Burmese, Cantonese, Dari and Dinka
- Child Protection Manual – Identifying Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander children
- Child Protection Manual – Orders – also available in in Arabic, Mandarin, Turkish, Vietnamese, Burmese, Cantonese, Dari and Dinka
- Children’s Court of Victoria – The Family Division
- Department of Health and Human Services – Child Protection Orders
- The Law Handbook – Child Protection
- Victoria Legal Aid – Going to court for a child protection case
- Children’s Court of WA – Child Protection Proceedings
- Children’s Court of WA – Protection Proceedings
- Legal Aid WA – Going to court for a child protection case
- Legal Aid WA – Child representatives in the Children’s Court
- Legal Aid WA – Preparing for a final hearing in a protection and care matter in the Children’s Court of WA
- Legal Aid WA – Protection Orders in the Children’s Court
- Legal Aid WA – Representing yourself at a final hearing for a protection and care matter in the Children’s Court of WA
- The Family Inclusion Network of WA – Finding your way with the Department
- 昆士兰法律援助处 – 儿童保护值班律师
- 昆士兰法律援助处 – 儿童保护法律信息
- 昆士兰法律援助处 – 独立代表如何帮助我的孩子解决其保护事宜？
- 昆士兰法律手册 – 儿童保护
- 西南布里斯班社区法律中心 – 父母儿童保护信息包
视频
- 原住民和托雷斯海峡岛民法律服务 – 了解您的权利，儿童保护
- 南澳大利亚州法律服务委员会 – 儿童保护
- SA法律手册 – 监护和保护令
- SA法律手册 – 儿童保护限制令和其他措施
- 南澳大利亚州法院管理局 – 监护和保护管辖权
- 塔斯马尼亚州法律援助委员会 – 儿童保护宣传册
- 塔斯马尼亚法律手册 – 监护和保护令
- 塔斯马尼亚社区部 – 儿童保护中使用的法律命令
- 塔斯马尼亚社区部 – 家庭小组会议
- 塔斯马尼亚社区部 – 寄养家庭中父母的权利
- 塔斯马尼亚社区部 – 儿童保护宣传册
- 西澳儿童法院 – 儿童保护诉讼
- 西澳儿童法院 – 保护诉讼
- 西澳法律援助 – 儿童保护案件出庭
- 西澳法律援助 – 儿童法院中的儿童代表
- 西澳法律援助 – 在西澳儿童法院准备保护和照顾事项的最终听证
- 西澳法律援助 – 儿童法院的保护令
- 西澳法律援助 – 在西澳儿童法院自行代理保护和照顾事项的最终听证
- 西澳家庭包容网络 – 了解部门工作
- 昆士兰法律援助署 – 儿童保护值班律师
- 昆士兰法律援助署 – 儿童保护法律信息
- 昆士兰法律援助署 – 独立代表将如何帮助我的孩子解决保护问题？
- 昆士兰法律手册 – 儿童保护
- 西南布里斯班社区法律中心 – 家长儿童保护信息资料包
视频
- 原住民和托雷斯海峡岛民法律服务 – 了解您的权利，儿童保护
- 西澳儿童法院 – 儿童保护诉讼
- 西澳儿童法院 – 保护诉讼
- 西澳法律援助处 – 出庭参加儿童保护案件
- 西澳法律援助处 – 儿童法院中的儿童代表
- 西澳法律援助处 – 为西澳儿童法院的保护和照顾事项最终听证会做准备
- 西澳法律援助处 – 儿童法院的保护令
- 西澳法律援助处 – 在西澳儿童法院的保护和照顾事项最终听证会中自我代理
- 西澳家庭包容网络 – 与部门打交道