Warning comes as 600 people every day “running the gauntlet” of a divorce system that encourages conflict, says top family lawyer.
Full story: Resolution
Deaths under DoLS changes – further guidance
A Home Office Circular has now been published to accompany the Policing and Crime Act 2017 changes (including those relating to death under DoLS) coming into force on Monday 3 April 2017.
Full story: Family Law
Full story: Family Law
New Chief Coroner’s Guidance on DOLS
To accompany the coming into force on 3 April of the change to the definition of 'state detention' introduced by the Policing and Crime Act 2017, the new Chief Coroner has issued new guidance – 16A – to accompany (and then supersede) the existing guidance.
Full story: Family Law
Full story: Family Law
State Pension: valuation on divorce or dissolution
The Department for Work and Pensions has updated the form which needs to be completed by each party of a divorce or dissolution in order to enable the court to decide on any State Pension to be shared.
Full story: Family Law Week
Full story: Family Law Week
Average time for disposal of care cases in 2016 falls to 26.9 weeks
The Ministry of Justice has published statistics on activity in the family courts of England and Wales in 2016 and the fourth quarter of 2016 (October to December).
Full story: Family Law Week
Full story: Family Law Week
Family Justice Bill 2016-17
A Bill to make provision for the enforcement of Child Arrangement Orders, including times within which enforcement action must take place; to establish a presumption in favour of shared parenting under Child Arrangement Orders; and to make provision for a commission to review and make recommendations on the operation of family justice; and for connected purposes.
Full story: UK Parliament Website
Full story: UK Parliament Website
Domestic abuse should be punished more severely than non-domestic, judges told
New advice to judges says offences in domestic context are more serious because such incidents are rarely one-off.
Full story: The Guardian
Full story: The Guardian
Parents' court fight over taking son, 5, to country suffering terror attacks
A father
insisted on taking his five-year-old son to a conflict-riven country to
visit relatives in defiance of the child’s mother, who was terrified he
would be placed at serious risk.
Full story: The Telegraph
Full story: The Telegraph
Watchdog finds £3bn in child support arrears may never be collected
Results follow National Audit Office’s examination of winding up former Child Support Agency and its replacement by new Child Maintenance Service.
Full story: The Guardian
Full story: The Guardian
Interim research findings on divorce law published
Interim findings from research exploring how the current divorce law works in practice have been published today (24 March 2017).
Full story: Family Law
Full story: Family Law
Expert representation essential in CoP – Bourns
Vulnerable people must always have expert representation in welfare cases, the Law Society has said, unveiling a mental capacity accreditation scheme for solicitors serving the Court of Protection.
Full story: Law Society Gazette
Full story: Law Society Gazette
‘Desperately unhappy’ Mrs Owens refused divorce
Munby P laments ‘hypocrisy and lack of intellectual honesty’ of current law.
Full story: Solicitors Journal
Full story: Solicitors Journal
High Court reserves judgment in DOLS funding test case
The High Court has reserved judgment in a case brought by four councils over government finance for work connected with deprivation of liberty safeguards.
Full story: Local Government Lawyer
Full story: Local Government Lawyer
Owens v Owens verdict 'underlines urgent need for no fault divorce'
The Court of Appeal has today (24 March) dismissed Mrs Owens' appeal in the defended divorce case, effectively saying that she must remain married to her husband.
Full story: Resolution
Full story: Resolution
Second Reading of Civil Partnership 2004 (Amendment) Bill deferred to 12 May 2017
The Bill, if enacted, would amend the Civil Partnership Act 2004 to extend the availability of civil partnership to opposite gender couples.
Full story: Family Law Week
Full story: Family Law Week
No power for Court of Protection to order care plan changes
Challenges to care-funding plans should be heard in Administrative Court.
Full story: Solicitors Journal
Full story: Solicitors Journal
Lord Wilson: Prenups ‘may need further attention’
Contrasting views from Radmacher and Law Commission underline need for government review.
Full story: Solicitors Journal
Full story: Solicitors Journal
Impact of Brexit on legal services “a cause for concern”, justice committee says
The justice select committee has described the impact of Brexit on legal services as “a cause for concern, but not hyberbole”, in a report published today.
Full story: Legal Futures
Full story: Legal Futures
Funds crisis pushes more children into care - report
More children are being taken into care, some unnecessarily, because councils in England cannot afford to intervene earlier, a report suggests.
Full story: BBC News
Full story: BBC News
Unpaid child maintenance backlog in UK is £3.8bn
There is a UK backlog of more than £3.8bn in uncollected child maintenance payments, figures have revealed.
Full story: BBC News
Full story: BBC News
Lords warn leaving EU legal framework poses risks for cross-border cases
Justice sub-committee says alternatives should be in place before walking away from reciprocal regulations.
Full story: The Guardian
Full story: The Guardian
Civil Partnership Act 2004 (Amendment) Bill due to have Second Reading on 24 March 2017
The Civil Partnership Act 2004 (Amendment) Bill is due to have its Second Reading in the House of Commons on 24 March 2017. The Bill, if enacted, would amend the Civil Partnership Act 2004 to extend the availability of civil partnership to opposite sex couples.
Full story: Family Law Week
Full story: Family Law Week
Local authority alert sees family barrister fined over data security failings
A senior family law and Court of Protection barrister has been fined £1,000 by the Information Commissioner's Office for failing to keep clients’ sensitive personal information secure.
Full story: Local Government Lawyer
Full story: Local Government Lawyer
The Family Procedure (Amendment) Rules 2017
These Rules amend the Family Procedure Rules 2010, to ensure that applicants for certain orders do not, in person, hand over papers to respondents.
Statutory Instrument
Statutory Instrument
Schemes allowing direct instruction of barristers are working well, BSB’s review finds
Family Law one of the areas for which Public Access is most commonly used.
Full story: Family Law Week
Full story: Family Law Week
Inclusion of earnings from ‘special occupations’ in the 2012 child maintenance scheme
The House of Commons Library has published a research briefing providing information about child support and earnings from certain "special occupations".
Full story: Family Law Week
Full story: Family Law Week
Judge rules boy must be taught in Islamic faith school against wishes of father
A father who described himself as an “Anglo-Saxon” atheist has lost a legal battle to prevent his ex-wife from sending their son to an Islamic secondary school.
Full story: The Independent
Full story: The Independent
Carolyn Hilder appointed Senior Judge of the Court of Protection
Carolyn Hilder has been appointed a Circuit Judge, deployed to the South Eastern Circuit, and will be based at the Court of Protection, London, where she will preside as Senior Judge of the Court of Protection.
Full story: Family Law Week
Full story: Family Law Week
Supreme Court emphasises the limited circumstances in which courts may interfere with testator’s wishes
The Supreme Court has allowed the charities' appeal in Ilott v The Blue Cross and others [2017] UKSC 17. The judgment emphasises the limited circumstances in which the court will interfere with an individual's wishes when making a will.
Full story: Family Law Week
Full story: Family Law Week
Same gender couples shun religious marriage ceremonies
Figures published latest marriages in England and Wales statistics from the ONS.
Full story: Family Law Hub
Full story: Family Law Hub
Judge slams council over poor quality social work assessments
Justice MacDonald found Cheshire East council’s risk assessments of potential carers for an 11-month-old girl were unusable.
Full story: Community Care
Full story: Community Care
Council complains about conduct of solicitor in public law care proceedings
A local authority is reported to have complained about the conduct of a solicitor who represented the father of the youngest child in care proceedings while having “some sort of relationship” with the mother’s brother.
Full story: Local Government Lawyer
Full story: Local Government Lawyer
People with dementia and learning difficulties detained in care without checks due to 'failing' law, says Law Commission
Capacity and Deprivation of Liberty report published by Law Commission recommends replacing DoLS with a new scheme, called the Liberty Protection Safeguards.
Full story: Family Law
Full story: Family Law
Ex-wife of Laura Ashley boss wants £100m for 'equal contribution' to marriage
A 70-year-old former beauty queen embroiled in a divorce cash battle with a millionaire Laura Ashley boss says she made an equal contribution to generating wealth by being a "traditional" wife.
Full story: Aol.
Full story: Aol.
Munby: ‘judges should not have to justify themselves’
The most senior family judge has stepped into the controversy over press attacks on the judiciary, telling solicitors that judges should not have to justify their rulings – while conjuring a dystopian vision of judges being hauled on to Newsnight to defend themselves.
Full story: Law Society Gazette
Full story: Law Society Gazette
Care applications in January 2017
In February 2017, Cafcass received a total of 1,134 care applications. This figure represents an 8% decrease compared with those received in February 2016.
Full story: Cafcass
Full story: Cafcass
Cafcass private law demand
In February 2017, Cafcass received a total of 3,414 new private law cases. This is a 3% increase on February 2016 levels.
Full story: Cafcass
Full story: Cafcass
We need to rethink adoption in the social media age, says senior judge
Lord Justice McFarlane suggests too many children are being forcibly adopted and calls for a rethink of UK policy.
Full story: The Guardian
Full story: The Guardian
Trenchant comments from Cobb J in two decisions about Human Rights Act claims in care proceedings
Need for practitioners to review new or pending human rights claims attached to care proceedings.
Full story: Family Law Week
Full story: Family Law Week
Teenager removed from foster parents without notice
Council criticised for failing to follow statutory children’s complaints process and for delay.
Full story: Family Law Week
Full story: Family Law Week
Extra £20m pledged in budget for battle against domestic violence
Government marks International Women’s Day with measures including greater help for parents returning to work.
Full story: The Guardian
Full story: The Guardian
Estranged couple fight 'phenomenal' High Court divorce battle over £500k holiday home
An estranged couple has settled a bitter row over their £500,000 holiday home in a “Titanic” High Court battle in London.
Full story: Evening Standard
Full story: Evening Standard
Government plans for domestic abuse victims a ‘bizarre dichotomy’
Spring Budget pledge comes weeks after proposals to cut fees paid to criminal court appointees.
Full story: Solicitors Journal
Full story: Solicitors Journal
Supreme Court considers pension equality for surviving spouses of same-sex couples
On 8 March 2017 the Supreme Court began hearing an appeal as to whether a male employee is entitled to require a pension fund to pay a surviving spouse's pension to his civil partner or husband on the same basis that such a pension would be payable if he were married to a woman.
Full story: Family Law Week
Full story: Family Law Week
Police pensions: transfer values and pension sharing on divorce
HM Government Actuary's Department has published documents covering non-club transfer values and pension sharing on divorce in the 1987, 2006 and 2015 police pension schemes.
Full story: Family Law Week
Full story: Family Law Week
Wife in divorce battle over holiday house tells High Court 'village isn't big enough for both of us'
A woman embroiled in a divorce fight over a holiday house told the High Court "the village isn't big enough for both of us".
Full story: The Telegraph
Full story: The Telegraph
New European Union returns policies ‘put children at risk’
Children’s charities emphasise express concern at ‘swift returns’ initiative.
Full story: Family Law Week
Full story: Family Law Week
Council’s use of special guardianship order criticised in serious case review
Agencies allowed a desire for a special guardianship placement to be successful obstruct child protection processes.
Full story: Community Care
Full story: Community Care
Parents 'should decide' care of baby
The parents of a seven-month-old baby who are challenging doctors in court to keep him on life support say they deserve the right to judge his care.
Full story: BBC News
Full story: BBC News
Litigation friend referral form for Children Act public law cases
The Official Solicitor's office has updated the form for solicitors to provide additional information about a protected party, if the Official Solicitor is asked to be a litigation friend in Children Act public law cases.
Full story: Family Law Week
Full story: Family Law Week
Men 'bullied' out of generous divorce settlements by breadwinning wives
Men are being awarded more generous divorce payouts with some also receiving ongoing payments from their ex-wives, lawyers say.
Full story: The Telegraph
Full story: The Telegraph
The Law Society publishes practice note on legal professional privilege
Practice note sets out practitioners’ duties and clarifies main principles.
Full story: Family Law Week
Full story: Family Law Week
Parents battle doctors to keep baby on life support
The parents of a six-month-old baby are challenging doctors in court to keep their son on life support.
Full story: BBC News
Full story: BBC News
Economist calls for the introduction of no-fault divorce in England and Wales
This week’s Economist calls for the introduction of no-fault divorce in England and Wales.
Full story: Resolution
Full story: Resolution
Domestic abuse survivors will be allowed to register to vote anonymously to protect them from their attackers
The rules will be relaxed after criticism that it is too difficult for abuse victims to keep their names and addresses secret – putting them at further risk.
Full story: The Independent
Full story: The Independent
Government scraps controversial social care exemptions plan
Department for Education confirms exemption clauses will be removed from Children and Social Work Bill.
Full story: Community Care
Full story: Community Care
SRA publishes family law research
The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) has published independent research exploring the experiences of potentially vulnerable people using family law services.
Full story: Solicitors Regulation Authority
Full story: Solicitors Regulation Authority
ALC publishes response to Cafcass / ADCS agreement
Agreement ‘does not respect the independent role of the Children’s Guardian’.
Full story: Family Law Week
Full story: Family Law Week
Social worker loses appeal against judge’s decision to name her
A social worker had been criticised for changing reports and then denying it in care proceedings.
Full story: Community Care
Full story: Community Care
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