Posts
Media & bloggers observing hearings
It is now 14 years since the Family Procedure Rules were amended to allow 'accredited media representatives' i.e. journalists to attend most types of family court hearings, and more than four years since 'duly authorised lawyers' i.e. legal bloggers were also allowed...
Transparency – cases about finance on divorce
The Financial Remedies Court sub-group of the Transparency Implementation Group (TIG ) has published a 164 page report. This refers to cases about financial remedies on divorce i.e resolving issues between divorcing couples about their income and assets – they are not...
Reporting Pilot update and some tips for reporters
On 28 April we reported that the Reporting Pilot was being extended to cover private law cases. That new regime came into play on 15 May. https://transparencyproject.org.uk/reporting-pilot-extended-to-private-law-hearings-and-other-tig-news/ Although the bulletin...
Independent external review of IPSO
Winning public confidence in IPSO’s independence and effectiveness remains an uphill task, according to its latest external review. While the newspaper regulator is generally well managed, its performance in dealing with complaints could be more efficient and timely,...
Believe a child or the adults? A question for Cardiff Family Court
This is a troubling story about three children subject to care applications by the Vale of Glamorgan Council; the final hearing took place last month and I attended Cardiff Family Court under the Reporting Pilot as a legal blogger. There are far too many (more than...
Reporting Pilot extended to private law hearings (and other TIG news)
From 15 May, journalist and legal bloggers will be allowed to report on private law hearings in the three Reporting Pilot Courts, Cardiff, Carlisle and Leeds. The Reporting Pilot that began on 30 January in public law is to be extended, so that a reporter...
The ‘Psychology Service’ for family court cases that nobody seems to know about
In March we saw a tweet from someone who had quoted a short extract from this study, which referenced a ‘psychology service’ used by Cafcass in England, and gave some statistics associated with it: namely that : ‘alienation/alienating behaviours was the most selected...
Balancing professionals’ Article 8 claims with parents’ Article 10 claims
With the progress gradually being made toward more openness in family court proceedings, there's increasing discussion about who should and who should not be named and identified in judgments and reports. Although there is consensus (and law) that children should...
Anonymisation of a young adult applicant for judicial review about section 20
There are two matters of interest in this unusual judgment by Mr Justice Mostyn in respect of a claim for judicial review brought by a teenager against a local authority, originally published on The National Archives as TT v Essex County Council [2023] EWHC 721 (Fam)...
Why we hardly ever see published family court judgments
Amidst the attention being paid to the courts in the Reporting Pilot, especially the series of broadcasts on the BBC Today programme by Sanchia Berg recently, other outputs from the President's Transparency Implementation Group (TIG) have been slowly emerging. One of...