Family
courtspublic
Following guidance being
handed down by the head
of the Family Division more
decisions made by judges
in the family court will be
made available to the public
and media on the basis that
it will increase transparency
and improve the public’s
understanding of the legal
process and confidence in
the court system.
Family court judges have been able
to choose to publish anonymised
judgments, but have tended to only
where they establish new legal
principles, rather than the run of the mill
cases the courts hear every day.
Generally speaking the starting point
will now be that judgments in most
cases will be published, unless there are
compelling reasons not to do so.
In deciding whether to grant permission
to publish a judge will have to consider
all the circumstances of the case,
Human Rights and the effect upon any
current or potential criminal proceedings.
The guidance states that in all cases
where permission is given, public
authorities and expert witnesses should
be named unless there are ‘compelling
reasons’ not to, but that children who are
the subject of family proceedings and
other members of their family, should
generally not be named.
The head of the Family Division has
stated that further guidance and more
formal practice directions will be issued
in ‘due course’.
The media are often criticised about
inaccurately reporting family cases, but
it is not entirely the fault of the media if it
is denied access to court judgments on
the case. It is to be hoped that one-sided
and sometimes incorrect media reports
of alleged miscarriages of justice in the
family courts will become a thing of the
past if everyone can see for themselves
the painful processes involved in
decision making in family cases and
90
how the often intricately difficult judicial
decisions in the family courts are
reached.
The guidance relating to the publication
of court judgments follows rules that
opened up the family courts to the
media. A ‘duly accredited representative
of news gathering and reporting
organisation’ can attend private family
court cases (the accreditation is
achieved by membership of the UK
Press Card Authority), the rules also
permit ‘any other person’ (which can
therefore include a non-accredited
member of the media) to be present.
The media representative can however
be excluded where it is necessary in the
interests of the child concerned in or
connected with the proceedings, for the
safety or protection of a party, a witness,
or person connected with such a party
or witness, for the orderly conduct of
the proceedings, or where justice will
otherwise be impeded or prejudiced.
Any member of the media must be given
an opportunity to make representations
before the decision is made and brief
reasons should be given summarily for
the court’s decision.
The rules do not allow the media to be
present for all types of family hearing.
Those hearings from which the media
are excluded include hearings at
which judicially assisted conciliation or
negotiation takes place.
Whilst the media will be reporting on
how welcomed measures are to open
up the family courts it is important that
we closely monitor the extent to which
the presence of the media and the