by Julie Doughty | Nov 28, 2025 | Cases, Explanation, FCReportingWatch, Legal blogging
A recent care case heard in Cardiff Family Court highlighted the experiences of children living in fear of their parents’ unpredictable and violent behaviour. The judge said that despite her having 30 years experience in care work, the children’s descriptions (in...
by Julie Doughty | Nov 27, 2025 | Comment, Consultations, Court of Protection, FCReportingWatch, Transparency News
It’s common knowledge that people involved in family court proceedings held in private are very restricted in what they can say about what’s happening. There are well-established and accepted restrictions on naming children (under section 97 Children Act 1989). The...
by Julie Doughty | Nov 6, 2025 | Cases, Explanation, FCReportingWatch
There was a lot of media coverage back in February of this unusual story of a British teenage boy who’d taken his parents to court to try to get back home to London from Ghana. His parents had tricked him into visiting Ghana in early 2024 where they’d left him,...
by Julie Doughty | Oct 24, 2025 | Cases, FCReportingWatch, Legal blogging
Six children, aged between two and twelve, were removed from their parents’ care because they had suffered chronic neglect and emotional harm, after court proceedings that had lasted 28 weeks and local authority involvement for 12 years. I’ve written about two...
by Julie Doughty | Oct 10, 2025 | Cases, FCReportingWatch, Legal blogging
Earlier this month, I attended a private law hearing held at West London Family Court before His Honour Judge O’Donovan. The judge made a transparency order at the beginning of the hearing. There are some unusual aspects to this case, including a section 91(14) order...
Recent Comments