Family courts have been open to the media for one month, but there are likely to be few changes in the cases of ordinary families.
The Family Courts in England and Wales have traditionally operated in private – away from the press or members of the public – when dealing with divorce or child welfare issues.
But new rules covering family proceedings came into effect on 27th April allowing UK Press Card holders to attend certain Family Court hearings for the first time, although access will still be prohibited for the general public.
Although rules have been changed to allow reporters to attend more family court hearings, the restrictions placed on reporting mean that, in most cases, journalists will not be able to write about what they see and hear.
It is likely that they will only take advantage of their new freedom in England and Wales where a person involved in proceedings is high-profile, or where a matter of public importance is to be considered.
There are still measures in place designed to protect children and vulnerable people connected to the case. The media can still be barred from hearings where their exclusion is thought necessary:
- In the interest of any child concerned in, or connected with the proceedings,
- For the safety and protection of parties, witnesses, or a person connected to a party or witness,
- For the orderly conduct of proceedings – which is apparently intended to cover situations where more journalists wish to attend than a court can accommodate.
If there are concerns about the presence of a representative of the press in court, an application may be made to have them excluded. The Judge will consider the sensitivity of any information which is likely to be disclosed.
Restrictions are still in place to protect sensitive information, so resulting reports will be published in an anonymous form.
There have been growing public concerns that proceedings are going ahead ‘behind closed doors’, and this was particularly apparent with high-profile cases like the Baby P case.
The government’s decision to open the Family Courts to the media was designed to restore some of that lost faith in the judicial system. But the protective restrictions are very tight, which means, when it comes to ‘ordinary people,’ the media are unlikely to report the proceedings anyway.
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