Download our two page briefing on this issue and our own proposals
Download our template response to consultation questionnaire which can be emailed to the DCA
View the Government web page on the consultation
Opening Up the Family Courts
Equal ParentingAllianceParty
Government Consultation on Openness of Family Courts
The Department of Constitutional Affairs (DCA) – the Government department responsible for the family courts – have issued their proposals for opening the family courts to public scrutiny, together with a consultation document and questionnaire.
Members of the public and other interested bodies are invited to submit their responses by Monday 30th October 2006, although they will still accept responses after that date.
What does the EPA think of the proposals?
We don’t think these proposals go far enough. If the government proposals were implemented in full, we believe they would bring a very slight, but mostly negligible, improvement to the openness of the family courts in England and Wales.
But why do we say this? The trouble is, they still leave one of the most important factors in family cases secret and unaccountable ... More ...
What are the EPA proposals?
A major weakness of the DCA proposals, in our opinion, is their failure to acknowledge the importance of accountability and openness throughout the entire court process - and not just in the court hearing in front of a judge, but ... More ...
Government Proposals In Brief
The DCA consultation document, despite running to ninety pages in length, really only manages one substantive proposal for increasing openness and transparency of family courts.
Their main proposal is that the media should be allowed to attend family court hearings as a right, (although this can still be denied by a judge giving reasons for the refusal). ... More ...
