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2014 News Archive
- Re B-S ‘has not changed the law’ says the President
News (21/12/2014)
Sir James Munby describes the 'myths and misconceptions' of Re B-S - Coercive and controlling behaviour to be outlawed
News (21/12/2014)
New offence will be clear and proportionate, says Home Office - Both parties unrepresented in 28% of all private family law cases
News (19/12/2014)
Family Court statistics published by MoJ - Call for more protection of vulnerable 16 and 17-year olds
News (19/12/2014)
The Children’s Society seeks amendments to Serious Crime Bill - Children in care and adoption performance tables published
News (19/12/2014)
Performance by English local authorities shown on 16 key indicators - Latest adoption scorecards published
News (19/12/2014)
Stats set out performance of English local authorities for year to 31st March 2014 - High Court hears challenge on domestic violence victims’ access to legal aid
News (12/12/2014)
‘40% of victims do not have required forms of evidence’ - Cohabitation Rights Bill goes to Committee stage
News (12/12/2014)
Resolution welcomes Bill’s progress but calls for greater reform - 15% of parents contacting Child Maintenance Options choose an ‘effective’ family-based arrangement
News (12/12/2014)
41,000 children benefited from such arrangements in 2013/14 - Adoptions in year to March 2014 rose by 26%
News (12/12/2014)
Number of looked after children in England and Wales continues to rise slightly - Muslim 'wives' discover that they have no marriage rights
News (11/12/2014)
Report is ‘tip of the iceberg’, says Baroness Cox - Research highlights extreme vulnerability of victims of CSE
News (10/12/2014)
Victims may think their relationships with perpetrators are ‘consensual’ - Care applications rise by 7% year-on-year in November
News (10/12/2014)
885 applications in November - New private law cases received by Cafcass in November falls by 9%
News (10/12/2014)
3,171 new cases received - Five new appointments to the Family Procedure Rule Committee
News (08/12/2014) - Supreme Court hears wife’s appeal in Vince v Wyatt
News (07/12/2014)
Hearing commences on 8th December - Family Dispute Resolution Week starts a media debate
News (07/12/2014)
“It's time to get family justice back on the agenda,” says Jo Edwards - Legal aid lawyers 'a dying breed'
News (07/12/2014)
Only 4% of young lawyers want to work in legal aid - E-Courtbundles 'could revolutionise' family proceedings
News (07/12/2014)
Nottinghamshire pilot elicits positive response - Legal aid procedures causing problems for the Family Court, says the President
News (07/12/2014)
Sir James Munby praises the work of Families Need Fathers - Husband ordered to pay wife’s £456K costs following his non-disclosure
News (04/12/2014)
£17m award to property magnate’s wife who signed pre-nuptial agreement - Relationship breakdown puts families in debt and damages business, says Resolution
News (28/11/2014)
Survey for Family Dispute Resolution Week underlines cost of divorce and separation - Hundreds of new FGM cases reported during October
News (28/11/2014) - New powers to prevent sham marriages announced
News (28/11/2014)
Notice period for marriage and civil partnership extended to 28 days - ‘Families are paying the high price of legal aid cuts’: Nicholas Lavender QC
News (28/11/2014)
Bar Council responds to National Audit Office’s report on civil legal aid - Private law family hearings are shorter where neither party is represented
News (28/11/2014)
Ministry of Justice publishes ‘experimental statistics’ - Report on experiences and needs of LiPs published
News (27/11/2014)
Range of measures recommended made to support LiPs - Jamie Cooper-Hohn awarded £337 million
News (27/11/2014)
Assets of £700 million in dispute - Too few children in care get right placement first time: National Audit Office
News (27/11/2014)
DfE must use its Innovation Programme effectively - Expert online welfare rights service goes live
News (24/11/2014)
CPAG launches information and advice service for advisers and claimants - Exam results 'suffering' as a result of parental break-up
News (24/11/2014)
Resolution survey published to coincide with Family Dispute Resolution Week - Family Dispute Resolution Week 2014 – 24-28 November
News (23/11/2014)
Resolution members organise events nationwide - Father accused of rape granted exceptional funding in family proceedings
News (21/11/2014)
Bar Pro Bono Unit notes steep rise in family applications - All divorce petition processing to be centralised by October 2015
News (21/11/2014)
Final decisions to be made by end of November - Parents should have legal aid to fight care proceedings, says Bar Council
News (20/11/2014)
Chairman of Bar Council urges Minister to drop means-testing - National Audit Office questions value for money of civil legal aid reforms
News (20/11/2014)
MoJ criticised for lack of understanding of LASPO’s implications - Prevention of child sexual exploitation needs higher priority: Ofsted
News (20/11/2014)
Problem not understood by many local authorities - Birmingham City Council obtains injunctions against men contacting girls under 18
News (20/11/2014)
Keehan J permits the naming of respondents - President’s Guidance on the International Child Abduction and Contact Unit published on judiciary website
News (20/11/2014)
Information about the ICACU and its role also published - Law Commission seeks to simplify the law of child abduction and kidnapping
News (20/11/2014)
reunite welcomes recommendations - Mostyn J calls for fixed pricing in ancillary relief cases
News (17/11/2014)
‘Totally disproportionate’ costs of £920,000 consume 32% of assets - McKenzie Friends’ trade association introduces new rules
News (16/11/2014)
Society of Professional McKenzie Friends responds to Legal Services Board recommendations - £19 million support fund set up for adoptive families
News (16/11/2014)
Adoption Support Fund to be rolled out nationwide from May 2015 - New association established for child abduction lawyers
News (13/11/2014)
CALA welcomes specialist practitioners as members - Gohil goes to Supreme Court
News (13/11/2014)
Appeal against ‘non-disclosure’ decision to be heard with Sharland - Education Committee endorses Anne Longfield’s candidacy as new Children’s Commissioner
News (13/11/2014) - Law Commission asks whether there should be specific offences for domestic violence
News (13/11/2014)
Commission publishes consultation on offences against the person - Myth-buster guide as to effect of Re B-S published
News (12/11/2014)
Misunderstanding of judgment has caused significant fall in adoptions - Care applications show slight increase in October
News (12/11/2014)
999 applications received by Cafcass - Number of new private law cases received by Cafcass continues to fall
News (12/11/2014)
13% decrease in October year-on-year - Woman allowed to change sons’ surname
News (10/11/2014)
High Court seeks to protect childrem from internet blog - Article 15 requests under Brussels IIR must be considered as early as possible
News (09/11/2014)
Pauffley J reminds practitioners of the urgency of addressing jurisdictional issues - Guidance published for litigation friends in Court of Protection
News (09/11/2014)
Guidance written for non-legal advocates - Solicitors do pro bono work to the value of £600 million
News (07/11/2014)
Two-fifths of solicitors have done pro bono work in the last year - Council pays £12,000 damages for removal of child
News (07/11/2014)
Parents’ Articles 6 and 8 rights breached - ‘Serious and deeply ingrained problems’ in children’s and adolescents’ mental health service
News (07/11/2014)
Health Select Committee reports on state of CAMHS - Non-payment of child maintenance may damage credit rating
News (06/11/2014)
DWP seeks Parliamentary approval of new enforcement measure - Ruling on preliminary issue in Quan v Bray “Tiger Charity” Financial Remedies case
News (03/11/2014)
Sir Paul Coleridge decides Tiger charity Trust not a Post-nuptial settlement and also rejects Barrell application - All new laws and government policies will face a new ‘families test’
News (03/11/2014)
Guidance sets out 5 questions all policy or legislation must address - Free mediation session available for separating couples from 3 November
News (03/11/2014) - Parents denied legal aid placed in an “impossible predicament” in relation to application concerning their 2 and a half year old son
News (03/11/2014)
Parents who were facing Local Authority placement order application without legal representation is “unconscionable” and a “denial of justice” says Sir James Munby, President of the Family Division - Referrals to children’s social care up by 10%
News (29/10/2014)
Nearly 400,000 children in need - Progress with Care Leaver Strategy reviewed
News (29/10/2014)
‘One year on’ update published - Baby P: the Untold Story
News (27/10/2014)
BBC to broadcast programme tonight - English court refuses to enforce foreign custody order
News (27/10/2014)
Holman J refuses to enforce Turkish custody order because, in the circumstances, to do so would be incompatible with English family law principles - Charity aiding male victims of DV supports proposed law change
News (27/10/2014)
The Mankind Initiative publishes consultation response - The President discharges location order due to failure to comply with the direction as to the service of the order
News (26/10/2014)
Order should have been served by Tipstaff - Government announces £2 million “support package” for separating couples
News (26/10/2014)
Improved online information, support for Litigants in Person and “dispute” helpline announced in strategy intended to put LIPs “at the heart of things” - Government publishes its response to Looked-after children-improving permanence consultation
News (26/10/2014)
Outcome of the consultation now available - ‘Worrying concern’ as to impact of child maintenance changes: Public Accounts Committee
News (20/10/2014)
£20 application fee could be significant barrier to low income parents - President envisages radical reform of divorce law
News (18/10/2014)
Sir James Munby urges changes to private law cases - Omnibuses for non-molestation and occupation orders released for comment
News (18/10/2014)
Comments sought by 10th November - Parental involvement provision comes into effect on 22nd October
News (18/10/2014)
‘Family courts will presume that each parent will play a role in the life of their child’ - Fewer than one in four couples seeking counselling to save marriage
News (17/10/2014)
Survey reveals women more open to seeking specialist help to avoid divorce - Revised regulations published for conversion of civil partnerships into marriages
News (16/10/2014)
Marriage to be treated as existing from registration of civil partnership - Hundreds of new FGM cases reported by hospitals
News (16/10/2014)
HSCIS publishes first set of aggregated data - No need for human rights proportionality evaluation in private law children proceedings
News (16/10/2014)
Legislative mechanism for such decisions is ‘human rights compliant’ - Practice Guidance: Family Court – Duration of ex parte (without notice) orders
News (16/10/2014)
Practice guidance issued by the President of the Family Division on 13 October 2014 - Order for security of costs granted against Michael Prest
News (12/10/2014)
Order made in respect of husband’s appeal against committal - Care applications received by Cafcass in September 7% up on last year
News (12/10/2014)
902 care applications received - New private law cases received by Cafcass decline by 25% in September
News (12/10/2014)
New cases for the current year are 37% down on last year - Closer solicitor–mediator collaboration is key to brighter future, says NFM
News (12/10/2014)
Call for legal intervention in divorce to be ‘proportionate’ - Over 60% of parents unrepresented in private children proceedings
News (12/10/2014)
‘Ministers should admit they got it wrong,’ says LawyerSupportedMediation - Updated family mediation guidance available from LAA
News (09/10/2014)
Draft amendments to guidance to prepare for changes to family mediation funding - Legal aid cuts are biggest problem for solicitors in Wales
News (09/10/2014) - Children must be protected from parents' problem drinking – Children’s Commissioner
News (09/10/2014)
New study identifies steps to be taken by health and social services - Converting civil partners will receive backdated marriage certificates
News (06/10/2014)
Marriage certificate to be dated as at registration of civil partnership - Dramatic drop in parents applying for child maintenance help as charges begin
News (05/10/2014)
3,700 fewer parents apply to CMS in August, notes Gingerbread - TACT concerned at sharp rise in special guardianship orders
News (05/10/2014)
Charity believes that record adoption figures are concentrated on younger children - Court loosens ‘nonsensical’ six month deadline for surrogacy parents
News (03/10/2014)
Surrogacy parents who miss deadline may still secure parental status - Guide to section 17 Children Act support published
News (03/10/2014)
Public Law Project publishes guide for migrant families - 180 divorce petitions dismissed in ‘industrial scale’ fraud
News (03/10/2014)
President considers measure to prevent recurrence of such cases - New national standards for family court experts
News (03/10/2014)
Revised Practice Direction 25B introduced - Relatives of adopted adults now able to trace family tree
News (29/09/2014)
Descendants now able to discover more of their medical background - Court finds local authority in ‘blatant disregard' of Mental Capacity Act processes
News (28/09/2014)
Patient returned to care of her family - Family court’s case load falls 19% from last year
News (25/09/2014)
MoJ publishes court statistics for April to June 2014 - Publicly funded private family law cases fell by 83% in one quarter, claims Lawyer-Supported Mediation
News (25/09/2014)
Fall in mediation figures alarms Resolution - ‘Sign of a civilised family justice system is more people resolving disputes outside the courts’
News (25/09/2014)
Simon Hughes addresses Family Mediators Association Conference - Number of looked after children in Wales has risen by 23% over last five years
News (24/09/2014)
Adoptions increase by 5% in last year - Children’s Commissioner’s research shows vastly underestimated impact of legal aid changes on children
News (24/09/2014)
In 70% of private law children cases one or both parties are unrepresented - Social workers taking the right care decisions, say Children's Guardians
News (23/09/2014)
Cafcass publishes review of 300 Children's Guardians' views on LA decisions - NSPCC highlights lack of support for children returning home from care
News (22/09/2014)
'Support for families with children returning home from care urgently needs rethinking' - State-by-state guide to surrogacy in the United States
News (21/09/2014) - Permission to appeal ‘ancillary relief’ decisions should be first sought from court of first instance: Mostyn J
News (21/09/2014)
Permission to appeal in AB v CD [2014] EWHC 2998 (Fam) refused - LASPO is damaging access to justice, claims Bar Council
News (19/09/2014)
'LASPO: One Year On' surveys impact of legal aid changes - Permission given to challenge government refusal of legal aid to domestic violence victims
News (19/09/2014)
Rights of Women granted permission for judicial review - One in three women have suffered domestic violence, says Refuge
News (18/09/2014)
Charity launches campaign with ITV’s Loose Women - Cobb J gives guidance on out of hours and without notice hearings
News (15/09/2014)
Judge reiterates warning of wasted costs concerning inadequate bundles - President allows daughter access to late father’s adoption file
News (14/09/2014)
Novel and unusual application granted - Couples hit hardest by recession are eight times as likely to break up
News (14/09/2014)
‘Social recession’ likely to continue for some time, says Relate - Family mediation take-up rose substantially in first half of year, says NFM
News (13/09/2014)
Autumn likely to signal further significant increases - New protocol launched for tackling stalking and harassment
News (11/09/2014)
CPS / ACPO protocol focuses on victims’ needs - Process of closing all Child Support Agency cases begins
News (11/09/2014)
800,000 cases will be closed over next three years - The Law Commission extends its review of mental capacity and detention
News (11/09/2014)
Review will consider legislation underpinning DoLS under the Mental Capacity Act 2005 - Children’s Commissioner launches inquiry into child sexual abuse in the family environment
News (11/09/2014)
Call for evidence by 7th November 2014 - New private law cases received by Cafcass fall by 37% in August (year on year)
News (10/09/2014)
Cafcass expects out of court support work to increase - Cafcass received 8% more care applications in August
News (10/09/2014)
Total for the current year marginally up on last year - One in three children split up from siblings in foster care
News (08/09/2014)
Action for Children calls for more foster carers for siblings - 70 per cent of local authorities place care leavers in B & Bs
News (07/09/2014)
Barnardo’s launches new guidance for local authorities - Resolution gives evidence to Justice Select Committee on the need for family legal aid reform
News (07/09/2014)
LASPO 'causing enormous strain on family courts and poorer outcomes' - 13,000 Deprivation of Liberty applications made in 2013-14
News (07/09/2014)
Almost 60 per cent of applications granted - Seven in ten looked after children have special educational needs
News (07/09/2014)
Looked after children four times more likely than others to have SEN - Government responds to the JCHR’s report on children and the legal aid residence test
News (05/09/2014)
Coram Children’s Legal Centre is 'staggered' by response - Home Secretary appoints chairman of inquiry into historic child sexual abuse
News (05/09/2014)
Fiona Woolf CBE will lead independent inquiry - Hillingdon girl likely to stay with foster carers following Ombudsman’s investigation
News (05/09/2014)
LGO concerned by lack of stability caused by search for adopters - Wife granted permission to appeal divorce agreement to Supreme Court
News (05/09/2014)
Sharland divorce case to be heard in June 2015 - Guidance for CoP cases involving pregnant women who may lack mental capacity
News (31/08/2014)
Keehan J’s guidance given in NHS Trust v FG - Billion-dollar divorce: was husband brilliant businessman or just lucky?
News (31/08/2014)
Nineteen billion dollar fortune at stake - Child Support Agency sees live caseload gradually decreasing
News (28/08/2014)
Percentage of parents contributing to current maintenance continues to rise - Couple petition minister over civil partnership conversion regulations
News (28/08/2014)
Dissatisfaction expressed at the bureaucratic nature of the ceremony - Rotherham – the report and responses
News (28/08/2014) - Standard Fees tables published
News (28/08/2014)
Tables for care and supervision proceedings, and domestic violence, children and finance proceedings - Four family exceptional case funding applications granted during April to June 2014
News (28/08/2014)
125 applications submitted to the Legal Aid Agency - UK surrogacy investigated in The Report on BBC Radio 4
News (21/08/2014) - 1,409 same-sex marriages between 29 March and 30 June 2014
News (21/08/2014)
ONS publishes first same-sex marriage statistics - Relate welcomes announcement on free mediation sessions for separating couples
News (20/08/2014)
Free mediation session dependent on one party being legally aided - Government measures progress against Family Justice Review recommendations
News (20/08/2014)
Half of public law cases are being completed within 26 weeks - Transparency consultation paper issued by President of the Family Division
News (20/08/2014)
Views sought as to working and extension of existing transparency guidance - Consultation launched on strengthening the law on domestic abuse
News (20/08/2014)
Campaigners welcome the consultation - PM's family agenda must include support for family breakdown
News (19/08/2014)
Cuts to family legal aid have undermined support, says Resolution - Councils do not know extent of child neglect in their area
News (19/08/2014)
National strategy to tackle child neglect is needed, according to action for Children - Financial Remedies Working Group publishes proposals
News (18/08/2014)
Views sought by 3rd October 2014 - A rise in divorces of older, successful wives by younger husbands reported
News (17/08/2014)
Firm sees such cases surge by almost a third - MFPA 1984 section 13 applications should be heard at local family courts
News (17/08/2014)
Holman J questions why applications cannot be heard by district judges - Half of Britons think punishment is key to ending FGM
News (14/08/2014)
Plan UK survey identifies differences in views between London and rest of UK - Child maintenance enforcement fees will hit vulnerable families hardest, says Resolution
News (14/08/2014)
New report from Gingerbread highlights financial struggle for working single parents - Children and Vulnerable Witnesses Working Group publishes initial proposals
News (14/08/2014)
Report builds on ‘comprehensive and outstanding work’ done in criminal courts - New private law cases received by Cafcass in July fall by 36% on a year ago
News (12/08/2014)
2,928 cases received in July - Highest ever monthly total of care applications received by Cafcass in July
News (12/08/2014)
1,013 applications received in the month - President sets out CoP process for deprivation of liberty cases
News (10/08/2014)
Procedure needed to meet expected ten-fold increase in DoL cases - Staying Put funds allocated to English local authorities
News (08/08/2014)
Details of each LA's entitlement published - Family Justice Council has three vacancies
News (08/08/2014)
Senior barrister (silk), magistrate and parents/ families representative sought - Inadequate UK asylum support pushing children into poverty, says The Children’s Society
News (08/08/2014)
Time running out for government to re-assess support rates for asylum seekers - Changes needed on exceptional funding, say Chairs of Resolution and FLBA
News (08/08/2014)
Jo Edwards and Susan Jacklin QC assess impact of recent family justice changes - Reports of UAE expats ‘liable to Sharia law’ are misleading, says local family lawyer
News (08/08/2014)
Importance of understanding UAE laws stressed - President directs HMCTS to fund legal representation of non-legally aided fathers
News (07/08/2014)
Ruling overcomes ‘inadequate’ exceptional funding scheme - Man jailed for breaching domestic violence protection order
News (07/08/2014)
Seven week sentence for Stevenage perpetrator - Information Commissioner ‘sounds the alarm’ on data breaches within the legal profession
News (07/08/2014)
ICO publishes ‘top tips’ to help lawyers keep personal information safe - Calls for international surrogacy rules after Thai Down's case
News (04/08/2014)
'Need for treaty similar to Hague Adoption Convention' - ‘Legal aid family law firms could face £100m fall in fees’
News (04/08/2014)
Relationship between barristers and solicitors could change following legal aid cuts - Mrs Justice King appointed to the Court of Appeal
News (31/07/2014)
Appointment from autumn 2014 - President demands compliance with court timetables
News (31/07/2014)
Court must be informed "immediately" in the event of any non-compliance - Thai crack down on surrogacy could leave British parents in turmoil
News (31/07/2014)
Surrogacies prohibited for prospective parents who are unmarried or a same-sex couple - Family court system at breaking point, says Resolution
News (30/07/2014)
“People are giving up and not seeing their children” - DfE publishes new guidance on education of looked after children
News (30/07/2014)
Local authorities’ duties detailed - £20 million funding to help children adopted from care
News (30/07/2014)
Fund intended to help close attainment gap with other children - Council’s policy on families with no recourse to public funds is unlawful
News (28/07/2014)
Newham directed to reconsider its policy - Case management guidance given in Court of Protection
News (28/07/2014)
Parker J urges a practical approach - 26 week rule is not a ‘straitjacket’, confirms President
News (28/07/2014)
Court of Appeal rejects local authority's appeal based on Re B-S - Labour attacks use of community resolution to settle domestic violence cases out of court
News (28/07/2014)
Prime Minister will consider making domestic abuse specific criminal offence - ‘Government does not understand the extent of sham marriage problem’
News (27/07/2014)
Home Affairs Select Committee publishes report - Children and young people will have a role in all family proceedings affecting them
News (25/07/2014)
Government commits to allowing children over 10 to express their views - ECtHR confirms that requirement of divorce does not breach transsexual’s human rights
News (24/07/2014)
Need to transform marriage to civil partnership not a breach of Art 8 - Law Commission to review mental capacity and deprivation of liberty
News (24/07/2014)
Project will take three years - Government will introduce regulations on mitochondrial donation
News (24/07/2014)
'No legal confusion as to who the child's parents are' - Overstretched Met struggling to keep pace with rise in child abuse cases
News (24/07/2014)
London Assembly report highlights impact of increase in caseload - Action and funding pledged on FGM and forced marriage
News (23/07/2014)
New legislation will enable parents to be punished if daughters are cut - Education Select Committee calls for ban on B & Bs for care leavers
News (17/07/2014)
Staying Put initiative should be extended to children’s home residents - Guide to ‘Staying Put’ arrangements for fostered young people published
News (16/07/2014) - Confusing data laws blocking support for disadvantaged children
News (16/07/2014)
Only half of local authorities are informing children’s centres of new births - Average duration of care proceedings in Jan-March 2014 was 33 weeks
News (16/07/2014)
Cafcass annual report and accounts published - Unrepresented parents in family court cases increase by 19,000
News (16/07/2014)
Number of mothers representing themselves rises by 52% - Regulations to introduce legal aid residence test are unlawful and discriminatory
News (16/07/2014)
Lord Chancellor does not have legal power to introduce such a test - Bodey J considers test for ‘without prejudice’ meetings
News (13/07/2014)
Couple’s dinner to discuss marriage difficulties was a not a ‘without prejudice’ meeting - New legal test needed in ‘pet custody cases’
News (13/07/2014)
‘Best interests of the animal’ approach advocated - No specialist lawyers available to Citizens Advice Bureau clients following legal aid cuts
News (13/07/2014)
92% of Bureau reports problems with referrals - Law Society condemns residence test decision for legal aid
News (13/07/2014)
MPs vote to pass the measure - Jamie Cooper-Hohn’s appeal against refusal of expert evidence fails
News (13/07/2014)
Reporting of ‘UK’s wealthiest divorce case’ permitted - Care applications in June 2% up on last year, according to Cafcass
News (10/07/2014)
Figures for the quarter 8% down on a year ago - Private law children cases fall by 37% in June, according to Cafcass figures
News (10/07/2014)
New cases in the last quarter down 39% on last year - Report reveals alarming gaps in knowledge about family child abuse
News (07/07/2014)
Children’s Commissioner launches national inquiry - Civil partnership conversion fee waived for one year
News (07/07/2014)
Draft regulations laid before Parliament - Bar Human Rights Committee welcomes report on FGM
News (06/07/2014)
Civil protection measures would facilitate prevention, believes BRHC - Quicker care proceedings do not distort court outcomes, pilot suggests
News (05/07/2014)
Tri-borough care proceedings pilot publishes final outcomes - MIAM attendance in Birmingham and Manchester fell by 73%
News (04/07/2014)
Regional details of mediation fall released - Ministers urged to accept Mediation Task Force recommendations by NFM
News (04/07/2014)
No role for lawyers in rescue plan, regrets lawyersupportedmediation.com - ‘Immediate action needed to stop FGM in the UK’
News (03/07/2014)
Home Affairs Committee publishes its report on FGM - Children’s residence tests breach their rights, says Human Rights Committee
News (02/07/2014)
Committee publishes report on legal aid, children and the residence test - A third of care cases concern mothers who are ‘repeat clients’
News (29/06/2014)
Cafcass data shine light on recurrent care proceedings - Free DNA tests being piloted to speed up paternity disputes
News (29/06/2014)
Simon Hughes seeks to avoid lengthy legal arguments - New child maintenance regulations come into force on 30th June
News (29/06/2014)
Single parent families penalized by maintenance rules, says child support specialist - No changes to civil partnerships
News (27/06/2014)
No consensus amongst consultation respondents as to the way forward - MoJ consults on marriages by non-religious belief organisations
News (26/06/2014)
Consultation proposes a third type of legal ceremony - BAAF welcomes £2m adoption support fund
News (26/06/2014)
Fund to be piloted in ten local authorities - Call for MIAMs to be free following ‘embarrassing’ Government figures
News (26/06/2014)
NFM says collapse in mediation attendance requires government action - Unrepresented mothers in private law children proceedings increase by over 60%
News (24/06/2014)
59% of mothers act for themselves - Royal Commission needed over ‘abhorrent’ child protection failures, says new report
News (24/06/2014)
Vulnerable children and young people are being failed by State services, claims CSJ - Proportion of unmarried families rises, according to last census
News (24/06/2014)
Cohabitation figures ‘show need for law reform’ - President permits access to DNA profiles to determine paternity of children
News (22/06/2014)
Murderer of children’s mother refuses DNA test - Divorcing couple contest value of hedge fund
News (22/06/2014)
Fund said to have assets under management of £3.5 billion - Local authorities to be permitted to outsource social care functions
News (22/06/2014)
Not-for-profit organisations will deliver children social care - BAAF matches record number of children with adoptive families
News (18/06/2014)
1,023 children matched in 2013/14 - The Family Bar: report reveals impact of legal aid changes on working lives
News (18/06/2014)
Biennial survey published by BSB and Bar Council - Baroness Deech’s Divorce (Financial Provision) Bill to receive second reading on 27th June
News (17/06/2014)
Bill aims to make financial provision ‘simpler, more certain and democratic’ - Local authority given permission to appeal to Supreme Court against costs order
News (17/06/2014)
Scope of T (Children) [201] UKSC 36 to be considered - President clarifies court’s approach to applications to vary findings in children cases
News (16/06/2014)
Father’s appeal in Re ZZ and Others [2014] EWFC 9 dismissed - MoJ underspends on mediation by £14m, claims lawyersupportedmediation.com
News (16/06/2014)
Budget saving caused by fall in mediation starts - Criminalisation of forced marriage becomes law on 16th June
News (13/06/2014)
Legislation provides for maximum penalty of 7 years imprisonment - Father’s negligence claim against Cafcass dismissed
News (13/06/2014)
Claim for breach of Article 8 rights also dismissed - Children can have habitual residence separate from their parents, High Court rules
News (12/06/2014)
Mother’s Hague Convention application dismissed in case remitted by Supreme Court - MoJ publishes analysis of public experiences of and attitudes towards the family justice system
News (12/06/2014)
Survey of direct involvement based on sample of 350 adults - Home Office launches anti-domestic violence campaign at start of World Cup
News (11/06/2014)
Family lawyers anticipate rise in divorce enquiries following World Cup - Marriages in 2012 increased by 5% on previous year
News (11/06/2014)
Largest percentage increase was among over 65s - Care applications down 13% on a year ago
News (11/06/2014)
857 applications received by Cafcass in May - Private law children cases in May halved year on year
News (11/06/2014)
Applications received by Cafcass fall, year on year, for the 8th month - 57% of parties in private law children proceedings are unrepresented
News (10/06/2014)
Number of unrepresented parties rises by 57% - President adjourns contact case because of father’s lack of legal representation
News (10/06/2014)
Ministry of Justice invited to intervene in proceedings - Law Society backs Rights of Women legal challenge to restore access to legal aid for DV victims
News (10/06/2014)
'Victims are facing ongoing risk of violence' - Mostyn J issues statement on the conduct of financial remedy final hearings before a High Court judge
News (09/06/2014)
Guidance authorised by the President of the Family Division - Number of legal executives likely to grow 17% in next decade
News (07/06/2014)
IPPR predicts increase three times faster than employment generally - Baker J gives guidance for cases where a child remains at home under a care order
News (07/06/2014)
Guidance approved by the President - Legal Aid Lawyer of the Year Awards 2014 - Winners announced
News (07/06/2014)
Resolution members win the two family categories - Legal aid bolt-on fee payments to be linked to advocate’s bundle under FAS
News (05/06/2014)
Government response published to consultation on court bundles and Legal Aid Family Advocacy Scheme - Cinderella Law included in Queen’s Speech
News (04/06/2014)
Action for Children welcomes announcement - 97% of magistrates say that increase in LiPs is damaging court’s work
News (01/06/2014)
Bureau of Investigative Journalism survey highlights magistrates’ concerns - President calls adjournment because of absence of interpreter ‘unacceptable’
News (01/06/2014)
Lack of Slovak interpreters a ‘concerning state of affairs’ - Former President calls for action against parents defying 'contact orders'
News (30/05/2014)
Lady Butler-Sloss suggests community service as enforcement measure - New rules aim to speed up the adoption system
News (30/05/2014)
Rules will come into force in July 2014 - Rise in emotional neglect and abuse referrals prompts call for ‘Cinderella Law’
News (30/05/2014)
No evidence that new law will prevent neglect, says ADCS - Family with disabled child lose judicial review of ‘bedroom tax’ ruling
News (30/05/2014)
Grandparents say that they will appeal against judgment - Jennifer Roberts QC appointed to the High Court bench
News (28/05/2014)
Appointment takes effect from 3 June 2014 - Scot Young’s trustees in bankruptcy write to Moor J concerning financial remedy findings
News (27/05/2014)
Trustees say that judgment will damage returns to unsecured creditors - Legal representatives ‘a rarity’ in private law children cases
News (27/05/2014)
Rise in LiPs leads to more contested hearings, say judges - Parents notified of introduction of child maintenance charges
News (23/05/2014)
Gingerbread concerned that parents will be deterred from making agreements - Birmingham’s children’s services are inadequate, finds Ofsted
News (23/05/2014)
Local authority committed to improvement plan under Lord Warner’s supervision - Child poverty strategy will fail unless strengthened, says Children's Commissioner
News (23/05/2014)
Response to draft child poverty strategy 2014-17 published - David Norgrove reappointed as Family Justice Board Chair
News (23/05/2014)
Chair remains for further two years - Legal Aid Agency wrong to refuse to pay full costs of expert’s report in private law children proceedings
News (23/05/2014)
Court of Appeal offers lessons for future applications for public funding of experts’ reports - Lord Justice Moore-Bick appointed Vice-President of the Civil Court of Appeal
News (19/05/2014) - YouTube videos help LiPs in family proceedings
News (19/05/2014) - Care Act 2014 receives Royal Assent
News (18/05/2014)
Law Commission welcomes implementation of its recommendations - Experts denounce proposal to outsource child protection services
News (18/05/2014)
Guardian reports concerted opposition to Government proposal - Supreme Court decides that inchoate rights of custody are covered by Art 3 of the Hague Convention
News (18/05/2014)
Court orders return of child to Lithuania - Proposed CPS guidance aims to help spot signs of DV against teenagers and pensioners
News (15/05/2014)
Public consultation until 9th July 2014 - Stop! Helpline missing four times the number of calls it takes
News (15/05/2014)
NatCen Social Research provides toolkit for setting up prevention helplines - Cafcass releases statistics for care applications for the 152 English local authorities
News (13/05/2014)
Statistics date from 2008-09 - Public law cases in April down 13% on a year ago, says Cafcass
News (13/05/2014)
Annual figure of 10,606 applications 5% down on last year - Cafcass reports year-on-year fall in April of 24% in private law cases
News (13/05/2014)
Rise in first half of year balanced by fall in second - Judge’s anger as husband stays away in Chai v Peng proceedings
News (12/05/2014)
The Independent reports husband’s second non-attendance - Girl of 13 can decide as to termination of pregnancy
News (11/05/2014)
‘Gillick’ test as to competence applied - ‘Surge’ in inquiries about pre-nuptial agreements
News (11/05/2014)
Telegraph reports wave of interest following Law Commission report - Equalities Minister gives no guarantee on timetable for civil partnership conversions
News (09/05/2014)
Government ‘aims’ to allow conversions by end of year - Quickie Divorce advert ruled to be misleading
News (09/05/2014)
Claim to be ‘UK’s leading providers of online divorces’ not substantiated, says Advertising regulator - Report reveals damage to children and families caused by debt
News (09/05/2014)
Children trapped by family debt, says The Children’s Society - Call from public sector for local government to ‘reclaim children’s services’
News (09/05/2014)
Solace publishes report outlining members’ views - Court of Appeal clarifies guidance on Judges' meetings with child in Hague Convention cases
News (05/05/2014)
Order for child’s return is set aside and rehearing ordered - DWP Child Maintenance Online Toolkit Goes Live
News (05/05/2014)
The Department for Work and Pensions provides a new child maintenance online resource - Divorce could be “Uncoupled” from Financial Disputes says the President
News (05/05/2014)
Sir James Munby calls for consideration of separating divorce from adjudication of financial remedies cases - Mr Justice Coleridge retires
News (05/05/2014)
Judge retires from the High Court Bench from 29 April 2014 - Insolvency statistics for the first quarter of 2014 show IVAs are up by over 14%
News (02/05/2014)
Latest figures give a mixed financial picture - Results of the Office for National Statistics’ Consultation on Marriage and Divorce statistics published
News (28/04/2014)
“Explorable” official data to be introduced from 2015 - Practitioners ‘positive’ about the revised Public Law Outline
News (25/04/2014)
Call for more flexibility over timing of CMH - Legal aid available for mediation in 1980 Hague Convention child abduction cases
News (24/04/2014)
Legal aid non-means and non-merit tested - Benefits of family law changes undermined by legal aid cuts: Law Society
News (24/04/2014)
Over half of parties in private law children proceedings are litigants in person - No family law applications for exceptional case funding have been granted in last three months
News (24/04/2014)
Eight out of 821 applications granted in a year - Cafcass praised for outstanding leadership by Ofsted
News (24/04/2014)
Service ‘delivers consistently good service for children in the family courts’ - His Honour Judge Newton appointed to High Court bench
News (22/04/2014)
Appointment takes effect from 9 May 2014 - ‘Largest family justice reform for a generation’ comes into effect
News (22/04/2014)
22nd April sees establishment of Family Court and introduction of landmark primary and secondary legislation - Adoption order made in ‘forced caesarean’ case
News (20/04/2014)
Adoption not opposed by natural mother - Child Arrangements Programme and documents published
News (20/04/2014)
CAP comes into force on 22 April 2014 - Legal Services Consumer Panel calls for contribution of fee-charging McKenzie Friends to be recognised
News (17/04/2014)
Automatic rights of audience should not be granted - Family Justice Council asked to act on Law Commission's recommendation concerning matrimonial needs
News (17/04/2014)
New guidance to be published later this year - President gives guidance on extensions beyond 26 weeks in care proceedings
News (17/04/2014)
Judgment considers meaning of ‘necessary’ for assessments under s 38(6) - Guide to statutory instruments coming into force on 22 April 2014
News (16/04/2014) - Route set out for carer who is neither parent nor guardian to participate in adoption proceedings
News (14/04/2014)
Court of Appeal dismisses appeal in Re G (A Child) [2014] EWCA Civ 432 - Family Rights Group concerned about proposals on fostering for adoption
News (12/04/2014)
Fear that there is a presumption against siblings being placed together - Three drug, alcohol, paternity testing companies go into administration
News (12/04/2014)
Trimega Laboratories suffers from legal aid changes - Adoption breakdown rate lower than anticipated by research team
News (10/04/2014)
3.2 per cent of children leave their adoptive home prematurely - Care applications received by Cafcass continue to fall year-on-year
News (10/04/2014)
Applications for March 3% down on a year ago - Private law cases received by Cafcass decline by 10% over last 6 months
News (10/04/2014)
March figures show a 7% fall on a year ago - More must be done for looked after children living far from home: Ofsted
News (09/04/2014)
Management oversight and monitoring often worryingly limited - Court of Appeal issues guidance on approach to be taken in cases involving parents with disabilities
News (09/04/2014)
Courts should not simply be driven by 26-week deadline - Children’s Guardian is not an ‘advocate to the court’
News (06/04/2014)
Appeal costs awarded against local authority - Courts must consider jurisdiction where cases have a foreign element
News (06/04/2014)
Local authorities encouraged to participate in Hague proceedings where there are also care proceedings - UN expert on violence against women launches mission to the UK
News (04/04/2014)
Preliminary findings to be presented in mid-April - Supreme Court hears appeal concerning de facto or inchoate custody rights for Hague purposes
News (04/04/2014)
Appeal from Northern Ireland to be heard on 8th April - New Resolution Chair cites ‘devastating impact of legal aid cuts’ on public and profession
News (04/04/2014)
Jo Edwards outlines challenges facing family lawyers - Fees for non-molestation and occupation orders to be abolished
News (02/04/2014)
Family Proceedings Fees (Amendment) Order 2014/811 made. - Child maintenance arrears based on inaccurate data: National Audit Office
News (01/04/2014)
Account for statutory scheme receives only qualified approval - Hague Convention on Child Abduction comes into force in Japan
News (01/04/2014)
Treaty comes into effect on 1st April 2014 - Women’s charities welcome new legal aid evidence criteria for domestic violence survivors
News (01/04/2014)
‘Almost half of women survivors are currently not able to access legal aid’ - Best planning for children in care yet to be realised by Independent Reviewing Officers
News (01/04/2014)
Challenges of making the IRO role work in practice revealed by report - Cafcass becomes part of the Ministry of Justice
News (01/04/2014)
‘Business as usual,’ says Chief Executive - Children’s services struggle to be more than an emergency service, says NSPCC
News (31/03/2014)
Surge in demand leaves more children unsupported, claims annual report - Justice of compensation claim ‘stares court in the face’
News (31/03/2014)
Husband ordered to pay £400K to terminate periodical payments order - Reform of child neglect law ‘will change lives’
News (31/03/2014)
Action for Children claims victory in campaign to introduce ‘Cinderella Law’ - Court of Appeal upholds termination of father’s parental responsibility
News (30/03/2014)
Court reiterates that paramountcy test is overarching - Latvian child taken into care without the knowledge of his father
News (30/03/2014)
Court lays down guidance for care proceedings where one parent lives abroad - Law must keep pace with ‘new families’, says Black LJ
News (27/03/2014)
Court of Appeal hears residence appeal by egg donor to former partner in same sex relationship - Increase in same-sex female couples seeking IVF emphasises need for pre-conception legal planning
News (27/03/2014)
Number of same-sex couples receiving IVF treatment increases by a third - Number of over 40s cohabiting increases significantly in last ten years
News (27/03/2014)
ONS release analyses 2011 data on marital status - Cafcass develops ‘new, improved’ Parenting Plan to support co-operative parenting
News (27/03/2014)
Interactive plan intended to avoid courtroom battles - Police response to domestic abuse inadequate, finds HMIC
News (27/03/2014)
Report's findings come as no surprise, says Rights of Women - Most children in the UK have witnessed neglect, charity reveals
News (26/03/2014)
Action for Children report makes recommendations for government strategy on neglect - First prosecutions for FGM announced by Crown Prosecution Service
News (24/03/2014) - ‘Out of control' case squeezing out 'needy litigants’: Holman J
News (23/03/2014)
£1.6 million expended in costs in financial remedy proceedings - Eight out of 617 family law applications for exceptional case funding have been successful
News (21/03/2014)
MoJ statistical release covers 1st April to 31st December 2013 - New guidance issued for Justices’ Reasons in the Family Proceedings Court
News (21/03/2014)
Guidance addresses criticism by Pauffley J in Re NL - Children’s Services lost contact with disabled child for more than four years
News (21/03/2014)
Birmingham girl with special needs ‘lost in the system’ - HFEA decides not to appeal in the Warren case
News (21/03/2014)
Authority considers that likelihood of future problems does not justify an appeal - Supreme Court defines criteria for deprivation of liberty of mentally incapacitated
News (20/03/2014)
Appeals allowed in landmark case - Trusts and other legal entities may have to name beneficial owners
News (20/03/2014)
European Parliament approves draft anti-money laundering directive - Budget: CGT position alters in relation to former matrimonial homes from April 2014
News (20/03/2014)
Budget locks in austerity for poorest children, says CPAG - ‘Real dangers’ of informal surrogacy arrangements highlighted
News (17/03/2014)
A proper HFEA application ‘should be ... part of the skills set of a competent general practitioner’: Mrs Justice King - Holman J considers allegations of ‘radicalisation’ in children proceedings
News (16/03/2014)
Judge expresses important points of principle on the matter - Court criticises Legal Aid Agency for failure to fund expert evidence
News (16/03/2014)
System is ‘wasteful, inefficient and simply unacceptable,’ says HHJ Bellamy - Nominations sought for 2014 Legal Aid Lawyer of the Year awards
News (14/03/2014)
Nominations close 1st April - Government consults on legal aid bundle payments to family law advocates
News (13/03/2014)
Consultation closes on 10th April - Children And Families Act 2014 gains royal assent
News (13/03/2014)
Family justice provisions to come into force on 22nd April - Supreme Court to hand down judgments in deprivation of liberty cases on 19th March
News (13/03/2014)
Court to consider DOLS in light of ECHR and Mental Capacity Act - Same-sex couple demand civil partnership conversion timescale
News (13/03/2014)
Applications for same-sex marriages can be made from 13th March - The Mental Capacity Act is failing vulnerable adults, say Lords
News (13/03/2014)
Lords Committee calls for new body to oversee working of the Act - Homeless teenager turned away by local authority
News (13/03/2014)
Local Government Ombudsmen finds that Doncaster MBC failed to carry out safeguarding enquiries - ‘Residential care provision must be part of greater care strategy based on meeting children’s needs’
News (13/03/2014)
Education Select Committee publishes report into residential children’s homes - 12% decrease in care applications received by Cafcass in February
News (12/03/2014)
885 applications received - New private law cases received by Cafcass in February drop by 11%, year on year
News (12/03/2014)
Just under 3,500 new cases - Parents increasingly represent themselves in residence and contact proceedings
News (10/03/2014)
More than 21,000 unrepresented parties between April and September 2013 - Clare’s Law rolled out across England and Wales
News (09/03/2014)
Roll out coincides with International Women’s Day - Widow permitted to store husband’s sperm long term despite non-compliance with regulations
News (07/03/2014)
HFEA applies for permission to appeal against judgment - ‘Coercive control should be criminalised,’ say victims of domestic violence
News (07/03/2014)
Survey respondents call unanimously for mandatory training of CPS and judiciary - Pension sharing orders a valuable, but underused, remedy, concludes report
News (06/03/2014)
First detailed study published since introduction of ‘family law’s best kept secret’ - Senior Judiciary questions subsidy of family courts by civil court users
News (06/03/2014)
Justice system should not need to be self-financing, say senior judges in court fees response - One-third of EU women have experienced violence
News (06/03/2014)
More than a fifth have experienced violence by a partner - NICE produces guidance for NHS on domestic violence
News (02/03/2014)
Call made for basic training requirements for all health professionals - Holman J overrides pre-nuptial agreement and awards husband £1.2 million
News (02/03/2014)
In Luckwell v Limata wife has to meet husband’s housing needs - Government plans to tackle child poverty published
News (02/03/2014)
Children’s charities bemoan the lack of new ideas - New draft guidance for social workers in the reformed adoption system
News (02/03/2014)
Consultation document published by DfE - Child Support Agency still handling 1.4 million live cases
News (02/03/2014)
CSA statistics for quarter to 31st December 2013 published - New ‘business banking’ service for child maintenance to benefit for employers
News (02/03/2014)
Service available for employers who administer Deduction from Earnings Orders - Referrals to Children’s Services at lowest since 2009-10
News (02/03/2014)
52,700 children became the subject of a child protection plan in 2012-13 - Law Commission recommends that ‘qualifying nuptial agreements’ should be enforceable
News (27/02/2014)
Report calls for Govt study into non-statutory formula for assessing needs-based outcomes - Elfyn Llwyd MP leads cross-party bill to strengthen domestic violence law
News (26/02/2014)
Bill seeks to provide statutory underpinning to government’s definition of DV - Law Commission report on Matrimonial Property, Needs and Agreements to be published this week
News (24/02/2014)
Article by Law Commission lawyer available on Family Law Week on 27th February - 8% of British fathers say that they have been unsure of their child’s paternity
News (23/02/2014)
3% of mothers have had doubts about their child’s paternity - Pauffley J commends the ‘constructive collaboration’ of parents in dispute
News (23/02/2014)
Parents assisted by ‘highly skilled, insightful and intuitive representatives’ - ‘Same-sex marriage will strengthen the institution of marriage’
News (23/02/2014)
Societies throughout history have changed the rules surrounding marriage, says Lord Wilson - New Family Law Silks announced
News (20/02/2014)
5 new specialist family lawyers in this year’s list of appointees - UK in breach of its international obligations on FGM, warns Bar Human Rights Committee
News (17/02/2014)
BHRC submission to Home Affairs Committee calls for specific Government action - President’s View No 10 looks forward to family law post-22nd April 2014
News (17/02/2014)
Family Court on schedule for establishment on 22 April 2014 - Publicly funded mediation continues to decline
News (16/02/2014)
MIAMs attendance in November 2013 almost 60% down year-on-year - Pauffley J deprecates Justices adopting LAs’ ‘Facts and Reasons’ in care proceedings
News (14/02/2014)
President recommends that the judgment be read by all care practitioners - Presentations from ‘One Bar: one voice’ broadcast by Bar Council
News (14/02/2014) - Average duration of care proceedings is now 36 weeks
News (14/02/2014)
Disposal times for care and supervision applications fall by 25% in 12 months - Government consults on family law court orders
News (13/02/2014)
Consultation closes 26th March 2014 - Private law cases received by Cafcass in January 2014 13% down
News (12/02/2014)
3,343 new private law cases received last month - Care applications in January 2014 9% down on a year ago
News (12/02/2014)
883 applications last month - Husband wins appeal in AppSense divorce case
News (10/02/2014)
Husband succeeds despite ‘deliberate and dishonest’ non-disclosure - Report highlights data protection challenges for fostering and adoption agencies
News (09/02/2014)
Information Commissioner finds both common problems and good practice - Staying Put’ amendment made to Children and Families Bill
News (09/02/2014)
Lords agree that over-18 year olds should be able to stay with their foster carers - Barristers meet to oppose further legal aid cuts
News (09/02/2014)
Profession demonstrates its united voice against cuts - Lords warn that child maintenance charges are ‘unjustified in principle’
News (07/02/2014)
Child Support Fees Regulations approved by House of Lords - Supreme Court will hear ex-wife’s appeal in claim against husband brought 18 years after divorce
News (07/02/2014)
Appeal in Vince v Wyatt [2013] EWCA Civ 495 to be heard in December - Number of divorces in England and Wales increased in 2012
News (06/02/2014)
Divorce rate down over the last decade - 'Shared parenting' amendment puts child welfare before presumption of equal access
News (05/02/2014)
Clause 11 amendment approved by Lords - Law Commission report on Matrimonial Property, Needs and Agreements to be published this month
News (03/02/2014)
No published report on prenuptial agreements as yet - Court enforces pre-nuptial agreement in application for interim maintenance
News (02/02/2014)
Wife fails to convince the court that the agreement should not be upheld - Ryder LJ gives guidance on split hearings in public law children proceedings
News (02/02/2014)
Lord Justice Ryder considers use of the term ‘non-accidental injury’ - Care leavers need help with university choices, says leading charity
News (31/01/2014)
Free handbook available by download from The Who Cares? Trust - New website launched for families involved in the child protection process
News (31/01/2014)
Child Protection Resource aims to demystify the legal processes - Government to proceed with changes to family legal aid fee payment schemes
News (30/01/2014)
MoJ response to consultation published - Benefits of relationship interventions highlighted by new study
News (30/01/2014)
Couple counselling improves quality of relationship markedly, says Tavistock Institute - Consultation launched on care for unaccompanied and trafficked children
News (30/01/2014)
Proposals welcomed by The Children’s Society - Greece becomes sixteenth state to sign up to EU international divorce cooperation procedure
News (28/01/2014)
No plans for UK to join procedure - Economic climate delays commencement of divorce proceedings, according to Grant Thornton survey
News (28/01/2014)
Grant Thornton publishes 10th annual matrimonial survey of UK family lawyers - Appeal by husband of variation of Krejci trust rejected
News (27/01/2014)
Permission to appeal denied in Hope v Krejci - Couple urged to end dispute that has cost £1 million to resolve preliminary issue
News (26/01/2014)
High Court determines claim over beneficial interest of shares in family business - Couple consider legal action to convert civil partnership into same sex marriage
News (26/01/2014)
Judicial review proceedings against government contemplated - ‘Uncomfortable’ truth that sometimes it is impossible to predict risk to children
News (26/01/2014)
Philpott serious case review published - Japan signs and ratifies the 1980 Hague Child Abduction Convention
News (26/01/2014) - More information needed for a better understanding of private fostering
News (24/01/2014)
Ofsted says extent of private fostering largely ‘unknown’ - MoJ’s assessment of court fees changes ‘not fit for purpose’, says Government body
News (24/01/2014)
FLBA publishes response to proposals - Father escapes further punishment for contempt following conviction for courtroom assault
News (24/01/2014)
President gives judgment in contempt proceedings after assault in Southend county court - Legal Services Consumer Panel to investigate fee-charging McKenzie Friends
News (24/01/2014)
Panel identifies emerging market in the wake of the rise of litigants in person - New MoJ data show further decline in mediation numbers
News (20/01/2014)
FOI request reveals 45% year-on-year fall in mediation starts - President issues guidance to improve transparency in the courts
News (19/01/2014)
Separate guidance for family courts and Court of Protection - Court clarifies its powers in respect of non-British European children present in this country
News (17/01/2014)
Reporting restriction order is limited to English language media - President calls for streamlined process for approval of arbitration awards
News (17/01/2014)
Resolution welcomes court’s approach to private arbitration awards - Application of deprivation of liberty safeguards varies around the country, says CQC
News (16/01/2014)
Commission publishes fourth annual report into use of safeguards - Domestic violence victims fear losing their children, claims Family Rights Group
News (15/01/2014)
Charity sees huge increase in calls to its advice line - Child can have separate habitual residence from parent with whom he resides, says Supreme Court
News (15/01/2014)
Supreme Court allows father’s appeal in LC (Children) - Private law applications received by Cafcass 4% down for December 2013
News (13/01/2014)
2,871 new applications received last month - Care applications for December 2013 continue a year-on-year fall
News (13/01/2014)
Cafcass received 808 care applications last month - Woman sues lawyers for failing to advise that divorce would end her marriage
News (12/01/2014)
Claim against former solicitors fails - Panorama investigates Vitamin D cases in the family courts
News (12/01/2014)
Programme questions expert evidence against parents - Australia moves towards 50/50 division of matrimonial assets
News (12/01/2014)
Husband’s special contribution given ‘unacceptable weight’ - ChildLine reports surge in calls concerning self-harm, suicide and online bullying
News (10/01/2014)
Voices of vulnerable children must be heard, says NSPCC - Cafcass Plus pre-proceedings pilot enables earlier assessment of extended family
News (10/01/2014)
Guardian feature focuses on Lincolnshire pilot - Non-competition injunction granted against ‘shadow director’ husband
News (10/01/2014)
President finds that shadow director’s fiduciary duties satisfy s 37 Senior Courts Act - Supreme Court to hand down judgment in Hague Convention case on 15th January
News (10/01/2014)
LC (Children) will consider children’s views as to habitual residence and status as a party - Holman J calls for changes to legal aid in child abduction cases
News (07/01/2014)
Legal aid lacuna is causing unfairness and wasting money - Adequate punitive sanctions are in place to enforce contact orders, finds research
News (06/01/2014)
‘Therapeutic’ approach to more difficult cases may be more effective than punishment - New rules introduced to stop out-of-area residential care
News (05/01/2014)
Regulations to come into force at the end of January - Parents' and children's differing perceptions of the effect of divorce
News (02/01/2014)
Netmums report suggests that divorcing parents are in denial about the impact on their children