Case Law Update: Re Z (Prohibition on Cross-Examination: No QLR) [2024] EWFC 22 – Parklane Plowden Chambers

Posted March 13th, 2024 in chambers articles, families, family courts, legal representation, news by sally

‘Sir Andrew McFarlane (President of the Family division) has handed down a very helpful and hotly anticipated judgment regarding the approach the court should adopt when it has directed a QLR be appointed for a party but no QLR has been found. Sir Andrew McFarlane took the opportunity to provide this judgment following a substantive judgment given at the conclusion of a fact-finding hearing.’

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Parklane Plowden Chambers, 19th February 2024

Source: www.parklaneplowden.co.uk

Profession disappointed with slim Budget pickings – Legal Futures

‘The legal profession yesterday expressed disappointment at the lack of attention given to the justice system in the Spring Budget, which will see the Ministry of Justice’s expenditure fall next year by half a billion pounds.’

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Legal Futures, 7th March 2024

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Family Drug and Alcohol Court model suitable for domestic abuse cases even where no substance misuse, says judge – Local Government Lawyer

Posted March 7th, 2024 in alcohol abuse, domestic violence, drug abuse, family courts, news by sally

‘A judge sitting in the Family Court has highlighted the successful use of the Family Drug and Alcohol Court (FDAC) model in a case where the main presenting difficulty was domestic abuse.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 6th March 2024

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

New protocol issued on disclosure of information between family and criminal agencies and jurisdictions – Local Government Lawyer

Posted March 6th, 2024 in disclosure, families, family courts, local government, news, police by sally

‘A new Protocol on the disclosure of information between family and criminal agencies and jurisdictions has been launched by the judiciary.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 5th March 2024

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Family Law Newsletter – February 2024 – Spire Barristers

Posted March 6th, 2024 in chambers articles, children, families, family courts, news by sally

‘Family Law Newsletter – February 2024; Articles, news, legislation updates and case updates from Care Proceedings, Private Law and Financial Remedy matters.’

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Spire Barristers, 26th February 2024

Source: www.spirebarristers.co.uk

Launch of the Disclosure of Information between Family and Criminal Agencies and Jurisdictions: 2024 Protocol – Courts & Tribunals Judiciary

‘The Disclosure of Information between Family and Criminal Agencies and Jurisdictions: 2024 Protocol comes into effect on 1 March 2024. It replaces the 2013 Protocol and Good Practice Model: disclosure of information in cases of alleged child abuse and care directions hearings.’

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Courts & Tribunals Judiciary, 1st March 2024

Source: www.judiciary.uk

High Court authorises deprivation of liberty of seven-year-old child in registered children’s home – Local Government Lawyer

‘The High Court has granted a local authority’s application to deprive a seven-year-old boy of his liberty, with directions to use the “minimum degree of force or restraint required”.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 1st March 2024

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

High Court judge provides guidance on applications for psychological assessments in care proceedings – Local Government Lawyer

Posted February 27th, 2024 in care orders, family courts, news, psychiatrists, social services by tracey

‘A High Court judge has given guidance on when applications for a psychologist to undertake a cognitive assessment in care proceedings should be made and the approach that the Family Court should take, warning that “misconceived applications are exceedingly common”.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 27th February 2024

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Use of intermediaries in the Family Court – Local Government Lawyer

‘Louise Thomson analyses a judgment containing valuable guidance on the use of intermediaries in the Family Court.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 16th February 2024

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Judge hails “vital” role of Family Drug and Alcohol Court after making supervision order – Local Government Lawyer

Posted February 15th, 2024 in alcohol abuse, drug abuse, families, family courts, news, supervision orders by sally

‘A Family Court judge has made a supervision order for a period of 12 months in order for a baby boy to remain in the care of his parents, in light of the progress they have made through participation in the Family Drug and Alcohol Court (FDAC) programme.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 14th February 2024

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

CA warns against misuse of judgment clarification procedure – Legal Futures

Posted February 13th, 2024 in appeals, care orders, family courts, judgments, news, reasons by tracey

‘The delivery of a judgment “is not a transactional process” and its contents are “not open to negotiation”, the Court of Appeal has warned, saying the clarification procedure was being misused in family cases.’

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Legal Futures, 12th February 2024

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Maintenance for a disabled adult child: a case of legal blogging – Transparency Project

‘Between August 2022 and June 2023, I observed, online, a number of hearings in a single case heard by His Honour Judge Shelton who is a judge in the family court in Leeds. The case was about the amount of money that the father/ex husband (James) should pay towards his ex-wife Beth and their daughter Isabelle. (These are fake names.) He had been paying £100 per month to Beth and £1500 to Isabelle. The case was unusual because Isabelle was an adult. Normally, a parent would not have to pay maintenance for an adult child, but there are exceptions to this and one of the exceptions is where the adult child is disabled. Isabelle has multiple physical and intellectual difficulties She lived with Beth in an adapted home and Beth provided her with full-time care, including with the help of various carers.’

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Transparency Project, 6th February 2024

Source: transparencyproject.org.uk

I’ve fought for years to report what really goes on in family courts. At last, journalists can – Louise Tickle – The Guardian

Posted February 1st, 2024 in family courts, media, news, pilot schemes, reporting restrictions by sally

‘Allowing journalists to report on hearings is welcome. Now editors need to give them the resources to be able to tell these complex stories properly.’

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The Guardian, 31st January 2024

Source: www.theguardian.com

Children’s wellbeing at the heart of family court reforms – Ministry of Justice

Posted January 30th, 2024 in children, dispute resolution, family courts, Ministry of Justice, news by tracey

‘Children will be better protected from the impact of lengthy courtroom battles thanks to pioneering measures to help families resolve disputes as swiftly as easily possible.’

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Ministry of Justice, 26th January 2024

Source: www.gov.uk

Austerity contributing to rise in children in care – head of Family Court – BBC News

‘Austerity has contributed to a rise in the number of children in care, the most senior judge in the family courts has told the BBC.’

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BBC News, 29th January 2024

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Government announces early legal advice pilot for separating couples – Legal Futures

‘The government is to launch a pilot of early legal advice for separating couples to judge what impact it could have to speed up a resolution.’

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Legal Furures, 26th January 2024

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

High Court judge gives guidance on use of intermediaries in Family Court – Local Government Lawyer

‘The High Court has given guidance on the use of intermediaries in the Family Court, in a case concerning a 2-and-a-half year old girl, which was in week 127 at the hearing last month.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 25th January 2024

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Hair strand testing – pitfalls and limitations – Transparency Project

Posted January 25th, 2024 in drug abuse, family courts, forensic science, news by sally

‘When it is disputed whether a person uses drugs, the family court can – and often does – order hair strand testing to determine the issue. This article draws upon the work of lawyer Sarah Branson and drug tester Paul Hunter, who have explored the limitations of hair strand testing and highlighted the need for caution in relying on hair strand test results (See Recent scientific developments in hair strand testing and racial bias in current practices of hair strand testing. I’m going to call this ‘the Fam Law article’). Even so, hair strand testing continues to be the ’go-to’ when there is a question over drug use. Despite an increasing recognition of the possibility of mistakes and errors in the production and reporting of hair strand test evidence, this evidence is still regularly relied upon by the courts as evidence of substance use. These problems are often underestimated, which can have disastrous consequences.’

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Transparency Project, 24th January 2024

Source: transparencyproject.org.uk

Court of Appeal moves to reaffirm “wide and flexible powers” of family court in care case – Local Government Lawyer

‘The Court of Appeal has allowed a Guardian’s appeal against a family judge’s conclusion that she did not have jurisdiction to grant an injunction.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 12th January 2024

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

The Use and Misuse of the Rubric in the Family Courts – Financial Remedies Journal

Posted January 12th, 2024 in anonymity, children, families, family courts, judgments, news, reporting restrictions by sally

‘In a familiar line of cases of which the first was BT v CU [2021] EWFC 87, [2022] 1 WLR 1349, paras [100]–[114], and the last In re PP (A Child: Anonymisation) [2023] EWHC 330 (Fam), [2023] 4 WLR 48, paras [49]–[62], and Augousti v Matharu [2023] EWHC 1900 (Fam), paras [68]–[93], Mostyn J has explosively ignited a most necessary debate about the anonymisation of judgments in financial remedy cases. Part of his compelling analysis – which, so far as I am aware, no-one has yet succeeded in challenging successfully – relates to the use, or as he would have it, the inveterate misuse of the rubric attached to judgments in such cases.’

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Financial Remedies Journal, 8th January 2024

Source: financialremediesjournal.com