Making cases smaller – while ensuring a fair trial

by Julie Doughty | Mar 13, 2024 | Analysis, Cases, FCReportingWatch

We’ve noticed a number of recent family court judgments where Mrs Justice Lieven in the High Court is seriously attempting to tackle some of the causes of delays in family court cases and also addressing problems created by the scarcity of publicly funded resources....

Another happy ending in East London Family Court – legal blogging under the extended Reporting Pilot

by Paul M | Mar 3, 2024 | Analysis, Cases, FCReportingWatch, Legal blogging

Returning to East London Family Court after my first experience of legal blogging under the Reporting Pilot (recently extended to this court), I was able to see another judge at work and to witness yet another happy resolution to what had evidently been a long and...

Happy endings in East London Family Court – legal blogging under the extended Reporting Pilot

by Paul M | Feb 18, 2024 | Analysis, Cases, FCReportingWatch, Legal blogging

The transparency Reporting Pilot, launched a year ago in just three courts, has recently been expanded to a further 16 courts, one of which is East London Family Court. As that court is within easy reach by public transport, I decided to investigate its potential for...

Maintenance for a disabled adult child: a case of legal blogging

by Polly Morgan | Feb 6, 2024 | Comment, Explanation, FCReportingWatch, Legal blogging

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...

Hair strand testing – pitfalls and limitations

by reporting watch team | Jan 24, 2024 | Comment, Explanation, FCReportingWatch

This is a guest post by Lucy Taylor. Lucy is a pupil barrister at Coram Chambers. 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...

Legal blogging – parents’ evidence in a private law contact dispute

by Julie Doughty | Jan 5, 2024 | Cases, FCReportingWatch, Legal blogging, Reporting Pilot

Attending a case under the Reporting Pilot at Cardiff court recently, two questions arose for me that might be recognised more widely in private law disputes: How does a judge manage a fair hearing where one party is represented by a barrister and the other party has...