Open Justice And Privacy In Family Proceedings

Are you concerned about promoting transparency whilst protecting the privacy of vulnerable clients? With a foreword by Sir Andrew McFarlane, the incoming President of the Family Division, and an author team from The Transparency Project, Transparency in the Family Courts: Publicity and Privacy in Practice clarifies what transparency means in practice for professionals and families involved in the family courts, and provides guidance on privacy in family law cases and their reporting in the media. This new title provides full coverage of the implications of the 2014 Guidance on publication of judgments and looks at: Section 12 of the Administration of Justice Act 1960 Section 97 of the Children Act 1989 ECHR Articles 8 and 10 Rules and Practice Directions covering all family proceedings Appendices include key legislation and case studies and the topic will be kept up-to-date on the Bloomsbury Family Law online service. This new title is essential reading for family law practitioners in private practice, local authorities and other public bodies, as well as media lawyers, journalists and social workers. Julie Doughty is a Lecturer in Law in the School of Law and Politics at Cardiff University Lucy Reed is a Barrister at St John's Chambers Paul Magrath is a Barrister with the Incorporated Council of Law Reporting for England and Wales

How far does a client's or a child's confidentiality extend on family breakdown? Understand the fundamental importance of legal privilege, privacy and confidentiality in family breakdown and in family court proceedings. Looking at the duties of confidentiality of all practitioners involved in family proceedings, this title puts privilege, privacy and confidentiality in its common law context. It considers and contrasts that family proceedings are almost always heard 'in private'; and explains how this rule sits with common law principles. It singles out the particular issues in care proceedings where there are parallel criminal proceedings and explains the differences in law and on statutory guidance between the duties of confidentiality between lawyers, doctors and social workers. This new title helps you tackle questions such as: Is a child entitled to confidentiality; or is it correct, as Working Together guidance says, that the mature child's confidences should be 'shared'? When can privilege be overridden; and when does it not apply? Does without prejudice immunity cover a mediator? When are closed materials procedures appropriate in children proceedings?

For approaching two decades, family courts have been accused of making life changing decisions about children and who they live with made in secret, away from the scrutiny of the public gaze. Recognising the force of these accusations, senior family courts judges have, over that time, implemented a raft of rule changes, pilot projects and judicial guidance aimed at making the family justice more accountable and transparent. But has any progress been made? Are there still suspicions that family judges make irrevocable, unaccountable decisions in private hearings? And if so, are those suspicions justified and what can be done to dispel them? In this important and timely new book, Clifford Bellamy, a recently retired family judge who has been at the sharp end of family justice during all these changes, attempts to answer those questions and more. He has spoken to leading journalists, judges and academic researchers to find out what the obstacles to open reporting are – be they legal, economic or cultural - and interweaves their insights with informed analysis on how the laws regulating family court reporting operate. Along the way he provides a comprehensive review of the raft of initiatives he has seen come and go, summarises the position now and uses this experience to suggest how this fundamental aspect of our justice system could adapt in the face of this criticism. Every professional working in the family justice system – lawyers, social workers, court staff and judges - as well as those who job it is to report on legal affairs, should read this informative, nuanced exposition of what open justice means and why it matters so much to those whose lives are upended by the family justice system.

It has long been a fundamental norm of civilized legal systems that the administration of justice is conducted in full view of the public. This is regarded as particularly important in criminal cases, where the accused is traditionally viewed as possessing the right to a public trial. The rise of the modern media, especially television, has created the possibility of a global audience for high profile cases. Increasingly, however, it is seen that the open conduct of legal proceedings is prejudicial to important values such as the privacy of parties, rehabilitative considerations, national security, commercial secrecy, and the need to safeguard witnesses and jurors from intimidation. In this topical new study, Joseph Jaconelli explores these issues and offers a critical examination, in the context of English law, of the values served by open justice and the tensions that exist between it and other important interests.

This book provides guidance for judicial officer in the conduct of civil proceedings, from preliminary matters to the conduct of final proceedings and the assessment of damages and costs. It contains concise statements of relevant legal principles, references to legislation, sample orders for judicial official to use where suitable and checklists applicable to various kinds of issues that arise in the course of managing and conducting civil litigation.

In many US courts and internationally, family law cases constitute almost half of the trial caseload. These matters include child abuse and neglect and juvenile delinquency, as well as divorce, custody, paternity, and other traditional family law issues. In this book, the authors argue that reforms to the family justice system are necessary to enable it to assist families and children effectively. The authors propose an approach that envisions the family court as a "care center," by blending existing theories surrounding court reform in family law with an ethic of care and narrative practice. Building on conceptual, procedural, and structural reforms of the past several decades, the authors define the concept of a unified family court created along interdisciplinary lines -- a paradigm that is particularly well suited to inform the work of family courts. These prior reforms have contributed to enhancing the family justice system, as courts now can shape comprehensive outcomes designed to improve the lives of families and children by taking into account both their legal and non-legal needs. In doing so, courts can utilize each family's story as a foundation to fashion a resolution of their unique issues. In the book, the authors aim to strengthen a court's problem-solving capabilities by discussing how incorporating an ethic of care and appreciating the family narrative can add to the court's effectiveness in responding to families and children. Creating the court as a care center, the authors conclude, should lie at the heart of how a family justice system operates. The authors are well-known figures in the area and have been involved in family court reform on both a US national and an international scale for many years.