People have had their hearts warmed by a family court judge who went "above and beyond" in response to a fostered boy's request to adopt his teddies.
The judge, from Western Australia, sent a mock legal letter to a seven-year-old, granting the adoption of his stuffed toys under the 'International Tedy Act 1908'.
“Before a Teddy in chambers," the letter reads.
“Application having been made under the International Teddy Act 1908 for an adoption order in relation to a hug of teddies known as Mr Denham, Baby Denham, Brown Bear, Bamboo, Special Teddy Jnr and Tiny who reside in ... Western Australia.
“It is ordered that [they] be adopted by [the boy] to be treated lovingly as child and teddies.”
Want an escape from the doom and gloom? Share your email for all the fun and heartwarming stories of the day from the Mirror
A picture of the court's response was posted on Twitter - attracting thousands of likes and hundreds of comments.
"That judge made five teddy bears, one boy and lots and lots of people on Twitter very happy. A generous and imaginative spirit is a wonderful thing," one user commented.
"A judge who [is] able to see the humanity beneath bureaucratic rules," another person wrote.
"As someone who was adopted as a child, this just made 42 year old me cry. This is really awesome," a third Twitter user said.
The story reminded some people of former Canadian Prime Minister Brian Mulroney - who once explained to a child why he couldn't own a gorilla as a pet.
In 1987, the politician wrote to a pleading seven-year-old boy: "Apes are only allowed into the country if people are going to put them in a zoo or use them for research.
"This law was enacted to protect people from diseases apes sometimes have which people can catch.
"Perhaps you should also think about where you would keep such a large animal if you have it and how much it would eat.
"An ape might not be very happy living in a house in Vancouver".
Do you have a hopeful story to share? We want to hear all about it. Email us at yourmirror@mirror.co.uk
