Guardianship — vaccination — COVID-19 — Care of Children Act 2004, ss 5, 6 & 46R — Townsend v Poole [2022] NZFC 2773 — Oranga Tamariki – Ministry for Children v AW and LC [2020] NZFC 4629 — MKD v Minister of Health [2022] NZHC 67 — Nora Colburn: How can we know the COVID-19 vaccine won't have any long-term side-effects? 14 September 2021. The parties were the parents of a young child. They were in dispute over whether the child should be vaccinated against COVID-19. The applicant father was in favour of vaccination; the respondent mother was opposed, because she was worried that the vaccine may endanger the child's health. According to the Care of Children Act, the paramount consideration for the Court was the welfare and best interests of the child. The Court found that documented scientific evidence showed that COVID-19 is dangerous to children, and that the vaccine is both safe and effective. Therefore it was in the child's welfare and best interests to be vaccinated. Judgment Date: 13 May 2022. * * * Note: names have been changed to comply with legal requirements. * * *