The family courts have historically operated with strict privacy and reporting protocols. And given the sensitivity of the issues that come before family judges in Wales that’s hardly a surprise. But there was always a debate about whether these restrictions on reporting had gone too far. Yes, the confidentiality of children and family members involved in sometimes acrimonious cases was robustly protected. But the result was that it was hard for the public and family lawyers to decipher how decisions were being made. For some this led to an undermining of trust in the family law system as a whole.
Back in 2023 we discussed a new project geared towards making the family courts more transparent. Originally the scheme operated in Cardiff, Leeds and Carlisle and in 2024 this pilot scheme was extended to cover sixteen more courts across England and Wales.
Here we consider some of the possible effects of this wider transparency in family courts and how these might impact families dealing with disputes about children, divorce and division of finances.
Cases About Child Arrangements
Under the scheme, accredited media and legal bloggers can report on the family cases they attend. Importantly however they must keep their reports anonymous, and, in each case, judges will clarify what can and cannot be divulged (judges do this through a ‘transparency order’). Transparency orders will restrict reporting of things like:
- The name or date of birth of any child in the case
- The name of any parent or family member who is a party in the case or who is mentioned in the case, or whose name may lead to the child(ren) being identified
- The address of any child or family member
- The name or address of any foster carer
- The school/hospital/placement name or address, or any identifying features of a school of the child
- Photographs or images of the child, their parents, carer or any other identifying person
- In cases involving alleged sexual abuse, the details of such alleged abuse
The pilot scheme resulted in a significant uptick in the amount of news about family cases appearing in the media – and there were no instances of anonymity being breached.
Some fear that the greater likelihood of a journalist watching highly charged family court proceedings could still discourage people from taking a case to court. In particular those who have been abused or those involved in bitterly contested proceedings about children might not welcome the presence of a journalist no matter how unobtrusive the reporter is or how strict the rules on anonymity are. This is something many commentators believe needs to be borne in mind as the scheme develops and beds down.
Financial proceedings
Financial remedy proceedings were not included in the original transparency pilot but in February 2024 a pilot for financial proceedings began in the Central London Family Court, Leeds and Birmingham. To date no Welsh court has been included but it’ s likely that if the scheme proves successful it will be rolled out to courts here and will have a significant impact on our clients involved in family court proceedings.
Under the Financial Remedies Transparency Reporting Pilot, applications for financial remedies on divorce, applications for financial provision for children and applications for financial relief after a foreign divorce can all be attended and reported on by accredited journalists – subject to any transparency order made in the case.
Whether the financial scheme will be extended in the same way as the pilot for cases involving children applications remains to be seen. In any event many couples prefer to reach a private arrangement about finances either through mediation or another form of ADR so that personal financial details do not become public.
Contact Us
If you need any advice on arrangements for children, finances on divorce or other aspects of family law, please call us on 01492 860420 or contact the team online. Gamlins Solicitors LLP has a network of offices across North Wales, and we can arrange an in-person appointment at the office that’s most convenient for you or a remote appointment if you prefer.
