If the DChS come to your door claiming to have an order to remove children they can ONLY DO SO WHEN handing you a piece of paper stating it is a Temporary Assessment order approved by a magistrate of a certain courthouse and will include the date and time it was approved and when it ends.
Also make sure this Temporary Assessment Order has the Children's Court stamp on it. This is to verify that it is indeed a copy that the Magistrate has granted.
It is for investigation purposes but don't expect investigations to happen, they usually wait until the 3rd day and then apply for a CAO
That's correct. A Temporary Assessment Order (TAO) only goes for 3 days. It can be extended for a further 3 days, but magistrates are reluctant to do so. Within the 3 day period of the TAO if the invesitgation has not been completed, they then apply for the CAO which goes for a period of 4 weeks, however this can also be extended.
which you have to be served a copy of the affidavit and papers but not always
They must
ALWAYS give you the paper work for the CAO and it
MUST be the copy that has been lodged with the court. You
MUST be given the affidvait and order which have both been stamped with the Children's Court stamp and this should be given to you before the date that it will be heard in court. They are able to give it to you the day before court, however if this happens, either get your solicitor or if representing yourself, ask the court for the matter to be adjourned to allow you time to read through the material. The CAO must be lodged with the court before the TAO expires, otherwise the children have to be returned as there is no valid order on the children. If the TAO has a provision for custody then this custody will continue once the CAO has been lodged and until it is heard in court.
Also when they question your kids, never allow them to talk with them alone, DChS and police have to wait for an independant support person to sit with them as it is illegal to talk with children without your consent for this to happen!
Actually this part isn't totally correct. They can talk to children at school under section 17 of the CP Act and don't need to have a support person with the child unless it is believed the child needs one due to age etc or asks for one. A magistrate can also grant a TAO which only allows DChS to have contact with a child so that child can be interviewed. However if this order is granted there is no provision which states that the child must have a support person.
I found more information on the interviewing process here
http://www.childsafety.qld.gov.au/p...-assessment/interview-child-process.html and here
http://www.childsafety.qld.gov.au/p...estigation-assessment/support-guide.html
