Hedley J: No good reason to prevent press access to family courts

Mr Justice Hedley made a “cautious” call to allow the press into all family courts. Giving the key note speech to the Association of Lawyers for Children Annual Conference, he wondered whether the workings of the family courts might not “be made easier” by allowing external scrutiny.

His stance on the issue had been modified over the years by his experience in dealing with the press who, in his view, had acted responsibly in preserving the anonymity of litigants. In particular he cited his experience in handling the Charlotte Wyatt litigation where the press, on the whole, had not “sensationalised” the story. In response to a delegate question seeking practical guidance on the issue, he added that in his view the press could be allowed “pretty free access” provided that strict rules of anonymity are followed and that the judge retains an absolute discretion, with reasons, to bar the press. This was necessary to avoid a media circus if, for example, celebrities were involved.

The main thrust of the speech was his contention that the aims of the family courts should be modest in that they should seek to leave the child and family better off than before the court proceedings. This involves constant reassessment of the “variable concepts” of welfare and good enough parenting. The standards to meet these criteria should not be too high as the statute makes clear that it is significant harm that is of concern to the courts: judges should not indulge in “social engineering”. He also cited his own adoption experiences in changing his attitudes to the importance of cultural and ethnic backgrounds in family proceedings, especially in adoption and contact. He had seen that one of his own sons retained a strong tie to his natural family and accordingly cultural aspects now weigh more heavily in the balance when deciding on an adoption placements or contact than in they had done in the past. He used the example of the Arab tradition of making boys live with their father from the age of seven. It would be wrong to ignore that cultural factor when exercising discretion as the child would have to live within that culture after the proceedings.

The full transcript of the speech is now available on the ALC website.

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