A 12-year-old girl in residential care in Queensland should be allowed to have an abortion, a court has ruled, after a judge found she was not capable of making the decision herself.

The anonymised judgment, delivered in July but published on Friday, is at least the third case this year where the court has authorised a termination for a girl aged 12 or under.

Justice Melanie Hindman found while the girl, referred to as G, "has been clear at all times … that she does not wish to continue with the pregnancy", she ultimately was not satisfied the child was "Gillick competent".

Gillick competency is a legal principle that, according to Queensland's Youth Justice Department, refers to a child's capacity to understand and provide consent for health care decisions.

If a child is considered n

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