El rol del defensor del niño. Habilidades necesarias para garantizar la protección del interés superior de niños, niñas y adolescentes en los procesos judiciales

Abstract

The child advocate in judicial proceedings plays a fundamental role in protecting the best interests of children and adolescents. Uruguayan legislation, doctrine and jurisprudence clearly recognize that the Convention on the Rights of the Child declares children as legal subjects, making them parties to the proceedings when decisions affecting their interests are made. Legal representation is essential and this representation can be implemented in numerous ways: the child advocate appointed by the judge in charge of the case fulfills this role in Uruguay. The purpose of this paper is to analyze the necessary skills the professionals exercising this role must possess, in order to guarantee a defense that effectively protects the best interests of children and adolescents.