THE BEST INTERESTS OF THE CHILD. ANALYSIS OF THE CONCEPT IN THE CASE OF PARENTAL DIVORCE

The child, a vulnerable being, represents our hope for the future. Respect for the best interests of the child is respect for humanity, and the child's place in society is undeniable. The legal recognition of this principle at the international level has been necessary, given cultural, educational, and family structure differences worldwide. The legal regulation of the principle, initially as the child's well-being and later as the child's best interests, is relatively recent, and the concept remains evolutionary, requiring a forward-looking perspective on the child's future. In any decision or evaluation concerning a child, they must be respected and heard. When balancing the child’s interests with those of others, if a fair balance cannot be achieved, the child's best interests must be given priority. Procedural safeguards, such as the child's right to be heard, reasonable deadlines in decisions affecting them, specialized training for those involved, and justification of decisions, are necessary to uphold this principle. This study focuses on analysing the fundamental concept from the perspective of the child's situation following parental divorce, when they become more fragile, emotionally affected, saddened, and sometimes even hopeless. In such cases, they require additional protection that parents in conflict may no longer be able to provide, making the intervention of notaries, judges, psychologists, and child protection specialists crucial.