# The Magistrates' Courts (Children and Young Persons) Rules 1988, Article 5: Assistance in conducting defence.


(1) The court shall, except in any case where the child or young person is legally represented, allow his parent or guardian to assist him in conducting his defence, including the cross-examination of witnesses for the prosecution.
(2) Where the parent or guardian cannot be found or cannot in the opinion of the court reasonably be required to attend, the court may allow any relative or other responsible person to take the place of the parent or guardian for the purposes of this Part.

---
Source: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/1988/913/article/5 (the official version)
Page: https://openlegislation.uk/magistrates-courts-children-and-young-persons-rules-1988/article-5
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives.