Spokespersons

Children who are capable of forming their own opinions can choose to speak directly to the tribunal that will make decisions in the case. Children can also choose to have a spokesperson appointed to convey their opinions to the tribunal.

The child's spokesperson is a neutral person who is skilled in talking with children. The spokesperson is appointed by the tribunal and will visit the child to talk with him/her. The function of a child's spokesperson is to give the child the opportunity to express his or her opinion in the case and pass the information on to the tribunal and the parties to the case.

The Child Welfare Tribunal will not appoint a spokesperson for children who do not want one. Nor will a spokesman be appointed for very young children who are unable to form an opinion about the case.

Children who have reached 15 years of age and understand what the case involves are entitled to their own lawyer in cases heard by the tribunal.

Each tribunal is responsible for appointing spokespersons. If you have any questions about the spokesperson system, please contact your local tribunal.
 

Before you can be appointed as a spokesperson, you must submit a police certificate of conduct. This refers to a police certificate pursuant to the Police Register Act Section 39 first paragraph. The certificate must not have any remarks.

If you have not previously provided a police certificate of conduct as a spokesperson, the Tribunal will confirm the purpose of the police certificate. Once you have received the confirmation, you must submit your application for a police certificate and the confirmation to the police. We recommended submitting a digital application via the police website. The police normally take two weeks to process the application. It is therefore important to apply as soon as possible.

Once you have received the police certificate, it must be sent to the Tribunal via the case portal. If the police certificate is without remarks, the Tribunal will appoint you as a spokesperson. Only then will you be allowed to contact the child.  

You do not need to apply for a new police certificate if you have previously submitted a police certificate to the Tribunal as a spokesperson. If you have a police certificate that you have received for reasons other than your assignment as a spokesperson, you must nonetheless apply for a police certificate as a spokesperson. 
 

Spokespersons are paid according to the rates that apply when they carry out their assignment, as set by the Central Office for the Child Welfare Tribunal. The current rate is NOK 394 per hour. All payments from the Child Welfare Tribunal to spokespersons are registered as personal income from employment in accordance with Section 5-10 of the Taxation Act. Spokespersons receive travel and subsistence allowances in accordance with Norwegian government travel expense rates for domestic travel. All travel must take place in the way that incurs the least expense to the government. The use of private vehicles can only be approved by agreement. Fee and travel expense claims must be registered as soon as possible and no later than one month after the work has been completed. Claims filed after the deadline will not normally be paid.

Remuneration
Spokespersons can be remunerated for up to eight hours in total for preparations and talks. In special circumstances, additional remuneration may be granted. By special circumstances is meant particularly time-consuming cases, for example cases involving more than one child. In addition, remuneration is paid for attending tribunal meetings.

Travel
Remuneration is paid for travel time and other types of absence between 08:00 and 16:00 on weekdays (Monday to Friday). However, no remuneration will be paid for other absence (between 08:00 and 16:00) unless the person concerned can document deductions in pay for absence from their ordinary work. Only travel time is paid outside of these times. No remuneration is paid for the hours between 22.00 and 06.00. The remuneration is stipulated in accordance with the current applicable rate.

Remuneration is only paid for absences longer than 30 minutes. No remuneration will be paid for travel to and from the tribunal premises in cases where it would be cheaper for the Norwegian state if the person concerned stayed locally. By travel time is meant the actual time spent travelling, including any necessary waiting time. No remuneration is paid for absences lasting less than 30 minutes. However, if the absence amounts to more than 30 minutes, remuneration is paid for the total absence, meaning that no deduction is to be made for the first 30 minutes. Remuneration is paid for every half hour commenced.

Registering claims
When an assignment has been completed, you can register claims for fees and reimbursement for travel expenses and other expenses via one of the following:

• The Norwegian Government Agency for Financial Management’s (DFØ) self-service portal (login via the ID-porten solution)
• App: DFØ Selvbetjening/DFØ Self service (available in the App Store and Google Play. First-time login via ID-porten)

The tribunal you have worked for has to order access before you can use the portal or app for the first time.

People who have opted out of electronic communication with the public administration, or are unable to submit an electronic form, can use paper forms. Grounds must be given for all exemptions.

The Norwegian Government Agency for Financial Management (DFØ) is responsible for providing guidance and user support. For questions of a technical nature, contact DFØ's customer service centre by phoning (+47) 400 18 659 or sending an email to lonn@dfo.no. For questions relating to assignments, please contact the tribunal that you carried out the assignment for.

Pay type for fees
Register the fee claim using Pay type 5534: Committee fees.

Travel receipts and other documentation
All required receipts and other documentation must be submitted for payment to be approved (this does not apply to fee claims). The best way to do this is to upload the attachments in PDF format when registering the claim. The app allows you to take photos of receipts and then upload them. Submitting documentation digitally is more secure and will ensure faster payment than submitting it by post.

Required documentation includes:

• Receipts and other documentation of travel expenses (with the exception of receipts for road tolls and the cheapest form of public transport – e.g. bus or train)
• Receipts for expenses to be reimbursed
• For air travel, documentation is required to show the route, date, cost and name of the traveller (a receipt of purchase is not sufficient). Please provide either an itinerary from the airline/travel agent issued after the flight was completed, or a receipt of purchase of a flight ticket and a boarding card/seat receipt. If you have an electronic boarding card, take a screenshot and upload it as an electronic attachment to the travel expense claim.