Religious and cultural identity in foster care

by Sarah P | Aug 28, 2017 | Comment, FCReportingWatch

On 28th August 2017 The Times published a story about a white Christian  child ‘forced’ into a (presumably) brown skinned Muslim family The prominent placement of this report on the front page with its eerie image of the little white girl being led away by...

What we’re thinking: the Family Court Adviser’s article

by Lucy R | Aug 26, 2017 | Comment, FCReportingWatch

An anonymous family court adviser (CAFCASS Officer) wrote an article for the Guardian this week: What I’m really thinking: the family court adviser. The strapline reads “Both parents are usually adamant that the other is a complete nightmare”. That is a...

Family Court Reporting Watch Roundup

by reporting watch team | Aug 19, 2017 | FCReportingWatch

Correcting, clarifying or commenting on media reports of family court cases Explaining or commenting on published Judgments of family court cases Highlighting other transparency news   MEDIA (MIS)REPORTS OF FAMILY COURT CASES   The Financial Times – We...

Family Court judge accused of misfeasance in public office by social worker he criticised

by reporting watch team | Aug 18, 2017 | Analysis, Cases, Comment, Explanation, FCReportingWatch, Notorious

This is a sad and unsatisfactory story. In November last year, the Court of Appeal allowed an appeal brought by an unnamed social worker and an unnamed police officer against findings of an unnamed judge against them. The unusual feature of the case was that neither...

Lasting Powers of Attorney in the news – a more detailed explanation

by reporting watch team | Aug 16, 2017 | Comment, Court of Protection, FCReportingWatch

This is a guest post from Victoria Butler Cole (@TorButlerCole), with contributions made by Heledd Wyn (@heledd_wyn) and regular Transparency Project contributor Barbara Rich (@barbararich_law). On 15 August 2017, the BBC ran a story about powers of attorney arising...

Rights: privacy, anonymity and freedom of expression on family cases

by David Burrows | Aug 14, 2017 | Analysis, Cases, Comment, FCReportingWatch, Trends

‘Open justice’ in family proceedings   As a High Court judge (Mostyn J) has commented (in Appleton & Anor v News Group Newspapers Ltd & Anor [2015] EWHC 2689 (Fam), [2016] 2 FLR 1) rights to open justice in family proceedings are a mess; though – sad to...