Nick Goodwin KC, Rob George KC and Edward Bennett in The Supreme Court in the matter of X and Y (Children: Adoption Order: Setting Aside) [2026] UKSC 13 on appeal from [2025] EWCA Civ 2
18th May 2026 | Cases
Nick Goodwin KC, instructed by Boardman, Hawkins & Osborne, led Dorian Day and Samantha Smith, both of 3PB, acting for the Appellant AM.
Rob George KC, instructed by Hunters Law, led Edward Bennett, acting for The International Centre for Family Law, Policy and Practice, an Intervener.
The Supreme Court unanimously dismissed an appeal concerning whether the High Court has an inherent jurisdiction to revoke a validly made adoption order outside the statutory appeal process. The case concerned X and Y, who were adopted by AM in 2013 following foster care placements. Although the adoption placement later broke down, this was not due to rejection by AM, who continued to support the children and facilitate contact with their birth mother, BM. By 2021 both children had returned to live with their birth family and subsequently supported AM’s application to revoke the adoption orders on welfare grounds.
AM argued that the High Court’s inherent parens patriae jurisdiction should provide a non-statutory mechanism to revoke an adoption order where this was necessary to meet a child’s welfare and identity needs. The Supreme Court rejected that argument, holding that there is no surviving inherent jurisdiction to revoke a lawfully made adoption order. The Court emphasised that adoption orders are intended by Parliament to be final and permanent, extinguishing the parental responsibility of the birth parents and creating a new legal parent-child relationship.
The Court held that the Adoption and Children Act 2002 occupies the field comprehensively and leaves no room for the inherent jurisdiction to circumvent the statutory scheme. While the court retains protective powers in limited circumstances, those powers do not extend to reordering parental responsibility by revoking a valid adoption order.
Please click here to read the judgment.
