Case Summaries

Judgment of the Court of Appeal concerning the interplay between the duty of the court to attempt to promote contact, and its case management powers to determine and dismiss issues at a hearing without live evidence, in a case where the judge had decided against ordering contact.

Application by a doctor and his colleague seeking disclosure and permission to use papers from care proceedings (and GMC proceedings) in circumstances where it was alleged that misinformed press reporting about the care proceedings in which Dr X had acted as an expert had severely damaged his reputation and ability to work in child protection.

Judgment of the Court of Appeal holding that early permanence placements do not justify change in approach to joinder of prospective adopters in care proceedings.

The court granted permission to NGN Ltd to appeal to the Court of Appeal to resolve the “unhappy divergence of judicial approach” to privacy and reporting restrictions in ancillary relief cases.

QBD decision in which damages were awarded to parents for an Article 8 ECHR breach following unlawful retention of their children by a Local Authority under an invalid s.20 ‘agreement’

Judgment concerning rights of birth parents and children after adoption. The making of an adoption order always brings pre-existing Article 8 rights between a birth parent and an adopted child to an end.

Application for committal of child’s uncle for alleged breach of a Collection Order in child abduction case struck out due to serious procedural defect

Application for permission to appeal out of time by the Husband in financial remedy proceedings. Holman J grants permission to appeal following a ‘Barder’ event.

Wife’s application for permission to appeal and to set aside financial remedies order on the basis, inter alia, of a number of matters she argued constituted Barder events with Husband’s cross-application for a civil restraint order against the wife.

Application to appeal an interim child arrangement order where the child made allegations against a parent. Appeal dismissed.

Within the final hearing in this financial remedies application, Mostyn J considers the law concerning the presence of the media in court and whether the practice of ordering every ancillary relief matter to be heard in open court is compliant with PD27.10 of the FPR 2010.

Applications for declarations of parentage in accordance with section 55A of the Family Law Act 1986 where children had been born following donor insemination but statutory requirements had not been complied with as a result of failure by the relevant clinic. Declarations granted.

The Court of Appeal reversed a decision of the Central London County Court to impute common intention constructive trusts with respect to properties and companies held in the parties’ respective sole names.

Appeal in jointly owned property dispute as to whether the court has jurisdiction to order the transfer of one beneficiary’s interest to another and/or power to direct trustees of land to sell property to particular beneficiaries without the other co-owner’s consent.

Application by a father for a parental order under section 54 (1) of the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 2008 solely in his favour. Application dismissed on the basis that such an order is not available to a sole parent.

Cross applications for an adoption order and the return of the subject child to local authority care pursuant to section 35(2) Adoption and Children Act 2002