Subterms
Are remote family courts really horribly cruel? Yesterday (4 June 2020), the BBC reported that remote hearing for family courts are ‘horribly cruel’. Since lockdown began, family hearings have been taking place remotely either via telephone or video link. In fact, from 23 March to 6 April, audio hearings across all courts and tribunals in […] More
Child custody orders are subject to modification when there has been a “material and substantial change in circumstances” and if it is “in the child’s best interests.” In a world rattled by COVID-19, it is hard to imagine living through a time when things have changed more materially and substantially from where we started in […] More
30 April 2020 Yesterday, Freddy McConnell lost his latest legal bid to be registered on the birth certificate as the father not the mother as the Court of Appeal dismissed his appeal. Freddy was appealing against a decision made by a High Court judge that a person who carries and gives birth to a baby […] More
Family law news: It has been a week quite unlike any that most of us have experienced in our lives. Our liberties have been restricted in a way that would have been unimaginable only weeks ago. And this could just be the beginning of a very long haul. At a time like this family law […] More
I am reminded of the title of the seventeenth-century ballad The World Turned Upside Down. Following the daily news, it seems as if all the old certainties have been swept away by a small infectious agent that replicates inside the living cells of an organism. It is, of course, true that the Coronavirus will change […] More
In a desperately awful week for news generally, here are my choices for the top family law stories: Court of Appeal family cases to be live-streamed Family hearings at the Court of Appeal are to be live-streamed, under a joint initiative by the judiciary and government to boost transparency in the justice system. The initiative […] More
Many divorcees follow the Texas standard possession order that says the custodial parent, whom the child lives with, and the noncustodial parent, will alternate years to keep their children on spring break. This year, many noncustodial parents had possession of their children over spring break, and their orders directing them to return the child the evening before […] More
A serious topic Are family courts biased? First of all, apologies if you feel that the title of this post is somewhat flippant. I do understand that this is a serious topic and that many people have very strong feelings upon it. In both directions. But I still feel that the title is appropriate, as […] More
