Cardiff Family Drug & Alcohol Court – a snapshot

by Lucy R | Mar 21, 2023 | Cases, Comment, Legal blogging, Reporting Pilot

On 2 February 2023, I attended the Family Court in Cardiff, aiming to report on cases under the newly launched Reporting Pilot. I identified one case on the court list which I was able both to attend and report. It turned out to be a hearing in the FDAC – the Family...

‘Somewhere in the history of this case we have lost our humanity’

by Julie Doughty | Mar 5, 2023 | Cases, Comment, Explanation, FCReportingWatch

This is an update on a case I wrote about in September last year – ‘Choosing the course which is less stressful to the child’. The hearing before Mrs Justive Lieven last summer concerned applications for care orders by Warwickshire County Council in...

Transparency in the Family Courts and the Court of Protection: what are the differences?

by Paul M | Mar 2, 2023 | Comment, Court of Protection, Legal blogging, Reporting Pilot, Transparency News

With the recent launch of the Transparency Reporting Pilot in the family courts, there may be a risk of confusion over some of the terminology, such as “Transparency Orders”, already used in the Court of Protection, and misunderstanding over the role of “legal...

What’s the future for open justice and ‘justice system data’ policy?

by Judith Townend | Feb 24, 2023 | Comment, Events, Transparency News

“Our justice system is years behind other public services like health and education in collecting and using data to understand performance and impact” says Natalie Byrom, director of research at the Legal Education Foundation (TLEF). “We need a fundamental shift in...

Royal wills: unsealing the mystery

by Paul M | Feb 19, 2023 | Comment, Explanation, Transparency News

In a series of earlier posts we have discussed the transparency, or lack of it, in the way the courts deal with wills left by deceased members of the Royal Family. In the case of the late Queen Elizabeth II, her will was not even required to be proved by a grant of...

For her own good – a family court judge authorises the deprivation of a young person’s liberty

by Lucy R | Feb 8, 2023 | Comment, FCReportingWatch, Legal blogging

Last week at a hearing in Cardiff, His Honour Judge Furness KC made orders authorising measures which amounted to a deprivation of the liberty (DoL) of a teenage girl. I observed the hearing under the new Reporting Pilot that is operating in that court. As noted by...