Parents cannot be automatically punished for their children's behavior: why cases of improper upbringing fall apart in court

In Ukraine, legislation provides for the possibility of holding parents accountable for improper fulfillment of their duties regarding the upbringing of children. According to Article 184 of the Code of Ukraine on Administrative Offenses, such responsibility arises in cases where parents evade providing the necessary conditions for the life, education, and upbringing of minors.

The content of these duties is defined by Article 150 of the Family Code of Ukraine, according to which parents are obliged to:

• raise the child in the spirit of respect for the rights and freedoms of others, love for the family, their people, and the Motherland;
• take care of the child's health, physical, spiritual, and moral development;
• ensure the child obtains complete general secondary education and prepare them for independent life;
• respect the child;
• understand that transferring the child to the care of others does not release parents from their parental duties towards the child;
• not allow any forms of child exploitation;
• not apply physical punishment or other actions that humiliate the child's human dignity.

At the same time, issues regarding the failure to fulfill parental duties are increasingly becoming the subject of court consideration. However, courts proceed from the fact that holding parents liable under Article 184 of the Code of Ukraine on Administrative Offenses cannot be based solely on the fact of the child's conflict behavior. For this, a set of circumstances is assessed, including the nature and systematicity of the parents' actions, the child's upbringing conditions, the presence or absence of proper parental control, as well as specific evidence confirming the evasion of parental duties and the causal link between upbringing and the minor's behavior.

In considering case No. 686/4388/26, the Khmelnytskyi Court of Appeal reviewed the legality of the first instance court's ruling, which exempted the mother of a minor student from administrative liability under part 1 of Article 184 of the Code of Ukraine on Administrative Offenses with a verbal warning, due to an incident that occurred between children at the educational institution.

According to the case data, during a break, a conflict arose between two students born in 2013 on the territory of the educational institution. One of them pushed the other and used obscene language.

On this basis, the police drew up a protocol on an administrative offense against the mother of one of the children, believing that she improperly fulfilled her parental duties, which, according to law enforcement agencies, led to a violation of part 1 of Article 184 of the Code of Ukraine on Administrative Offenses.

The first instance court issued a ruling exempting the mother of the minor student from administrative liability under part 1 of Article 184 of the Code of Ukraine on Administrative Offenses, limiting itself to a verbal warning.

The mother appealed to the appellate court, insisting that there was no administrative offense in her actions. In her complaint, she stated that she properly fulfills her parental duties, controls the child's behavior, and that the school incident was a one-time situation caused by a conflict between children, not a consequence of her improper upbringing.

The defense argued that the appellant did not commit any actions indicating evasion of parental duties, but on the contrary, raises her son in the spirit of respect for the rights and freedoms of others.

The appellate court established that to hold a person liable under part 1 of Article 184 of the Code of Ukraine on Administrative Offenses, it is necessary to prove the evasion of parental duties regarding the child's upbringing, not just the fact of a conflict involving a minor. The court noted that the first instance court incompletely examined the circumstances of the case and did not properly verify all the evidence. In particular, the appellate court emphasized that the case materials do not contain confirmation of systematic improper upbringing of the child by the mother.

During the appeal, it was established that the conflict between the students arose after a classmate insulted the boy's mother with obscene words and threw a snowball at his head. The child informed his mother about this in a messenger message. After the woman's appeal, the class teacher conducted an investigation and took explanations from the children.

As a result, the appellate court concluded that there is no proper and admissible evidence of the mother's guilt in the case, therefore the first instance court's ruling was canceled, and the proceedings were closed due to the absence of an administrative offense.

Thus, the appellate court confirmed that the mere fact of a minor's conflict behavior cannot automatically indicate the mother's evasion of parental duties.

A similar approach was taken by the Chernyakhiv District Court of Zhytomyr region in case No. 293/549/22, considering materials on holding a mother administratively liable under part 1 of Article 184 of the Code of Ukraine on Administrative Offenses. The court emphasized that to establish a person's guilt, general statements about inadequate living conditions or subjective assessments by local authorities are insufficient; it is necessary to prove the evasion of parental duties as understood by law.

The court noted that the composition of an administrative offense must be confirmed by a set of proper, admissible, and sufficient evidence confirming the presence of all its elements. In contrast, the provided materials — an inspection report of living conditions, photographic materials, and explanations of officials — did not contain indisputable data on the mother's systematic failure to fulfill her duties regarding child upbringing.

The court also noted that assessments regarding possible alcohol abuse or inadequate care were not supported by proper evidence and were therefore based on assumptions. In this regard, the court emphasized the principle of the presumption of innocence enshrined in the Constitution of Ukraine and the practice of the European Court of Human Rights, according to which all doubts about proving a person's guilt are interpreted in their favor.

As a result, the court concluded the absence of an administrative offense in the person's actions and closed the proceedings.

Recall that, as reported by the "Judicial and Legal Newspaper", a similar conclusion was reached by the Cherkasy District Court of Cherkasy region, considering a case on holding a mother administratively liable under part 2 of Article 184 of the Code of Ukraine on Administrative Offenses due to her minor son consuming alcoholic beverages.

The court emphasized that administrative liability of parents under Article 184 of the Code of Ukraine on Administrative Offenses arises exclusively in cases of proven evasion of duties regarding the child's upbringing, ensuring proper conditions for their life and development, and not for the mere fact of the minor's unlawful behavior.

In the reasoning part of the decision, the court stressed that the mere fact of a minor consuming alcohol cannot automatically indicate the presence of an administrative offense in the parents' actions. To hold them liable, it is necessary to prove a causal link between the child's behavior and specific actions or inaction of the parents, as well as establish that the parents had a real opportunity to prevent such behavior but did not take the necessary measures.

Thus, judicial practice in cases under Article 184 of the Code of Ukraine on Administrative Offenses demonstrates a consistent approach according to which administrative liability of parents cannot be based on formal or situational facts of the child's behavior. The decisive factor is the establishment of actual inaction or systematic evasion of parental duties defined by law.

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