The mother of a child or any other person who has parental responsibilities and rights in respect of a child can enter into an agreement with:

• The biological father of a child who for some reason does not have parental responsibilities and rights in respect of the child, or
• Any other person who has an interest in the care, well-being and development of the child.

A parental responsibilities and rights agreement must be registered with the family advocate or made an order of the High Court, a divorce court in a divorce matter or the children’s court.

Before registering a parental responsibilities and rights agreement or making it an order of court, the family advocate or the court must be satisfied that the parental responsibilities and rights agreement is in the best interests of the child.