Julien Foster was instructed by Conroy Storrie Gosney (Edinburgh) to prepare an opinion as expert evidence in proceedings in the Court of Session. The proceedings concerned an application in Scotland for a “permanence order” (which would pave the way to adoption) in relation to a male child, X. X’s mother, who had been born in Sudan, was, at the time of the birth, a child of sixteen. She had been accommodated by the local authority for a short period as a teenager, and had concealed the pregnancy from members of her family. Julien’s opinion, accepted by the court (Lord Braid) as being an accurate description of English law, addressed alternative options to adoption, including special guardianship orders and child arrangements orders, under the law of England.