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    Expert panel to review child protection in domestic abuse cases

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    Ministers have announced a panel of experts will be providing recommendations on how the family courts can better protect children and parents in cases of domestic abuse and other serious offences. The panel will consist of senior members of the judiciary, leading academics as well as charities.

    A public call for evidence will also be seeking views from those who have been directly involved in similar situations to share their experiences.

    The three-month project follows on from concerned responses about how the family courts deal with potential harm to children and victims. Ministers now want to review how existing safeguards in the court process are working in practice and how best to strengthen them.

    Measures have already been taken to improve the current system. The draft Domestic Abuse Bill, which was published at the beginning of this year, bans abusers from cross-examining victims in family courts. In February 2019, £900,000 was awarded to organisations that provide emotional and practical support to domestic abuse victims throughout their time in the family court. Additionally, £8 million of funding was announced to support children who are affected by domestic abuse.

    The Government has confirmed the review will focus on:

    • How the courts operate Practice Direction 12J (when domestic abuse is a factor in child arrangement cases)
    • Reviewing the courts’ use of ‘barring orders’ which prevent further applications being made without leave of the court under the Children Act 1989
    • Gathering data on the impact of the child and victim where child contact is sought by someone alleged to have, or has, committed domestic abuse or relevant offences
    • How the family courts handle serious crimes (such as rape and child abuse) to ensure protections are in place for victims and their children

    Paul Maynard, Justice Minister, concluded:

    “Some of the most vulnerable in our society come before the family courts, and I am absolutely determined that we offer them every protection.

    “The review will help us better understand victims’ experiences of the system, and make sure the family court is never used to coerce or re-traumatise those who have been abused.”

    Contact our Child Law Solicitors Guilford, Portsmouth & Reading

    At Child Law Partnership, the welfare of the child is always paramount, and we will place your children at the centre of everything we do. If you are looking for specialist leading advice from professional child lawyers, get in touch with our team today via the online enquiry form.

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    £84m investment for new projects to keep children out of care

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    Marking the 30th anniversary of the Children’s Act, the government has invested £84 million for projects designed to strengthen and support families with children in and on the edge of care.

    Up to 20 councils will receive funding to help improve their practice, reaffirming the 1989 Act’s central idea that, where appropriate, families should stay together and children should be brought up with their parents.

    Where there are consistently high numbers of children being taken into care, the government’s Strengthening Families, Protecting Children programme will roll out the three successful projects to other eligible councils. The projects – which aim to build resilience among more vulnerable families and improve how councils design and run their services – were initially developed by Leeds, Hertfordshire and North Yorkshire councils, all of which were rated ‘good’ or ‘outstanding’ by Ofsted.

    The three projects that will be introduced into 20 new areas are:

    • Hertfordshire Family Safeguarding – With this particular project in place, Hertfordshire saw a 39 per cent drop in the number of days children spent in care.
    • Leeds Family Valued – Results from the project found Leeds managed to nearly half the number of children’s services Protection Plans in six years.
    • North Yorkshire No Wrong Door – Evaluation of the project revealed a 38 per cent fall in arrests of individuals during the first 18 months of the programme and a 57 per cent reduction in A&E visits.

    Damian Hinds, Education Secretary, concluded:

    “Every child deserves to grow up in a stable, loving family and go through life confident that someone always has your back. But for too many children, this is simply not a reality.

    “In the year that sees the 30th anniversary of the Children’s Act, we must stay true to its heart – that where possible and safe, children are best brought up, loved and supported by their parents.”

    Contact our Child Law Solicitors Basingstoke, Guildford & Salisbury

    If you need qualified legal guidance about a child law issue, or have a general query about family law in England, speak with a member of our specialist family law team today via the online enquiry form.

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    New no-fault divorce law to end ‘blame game’

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    This week, Justice Secretary David Gauke pledged new legislation will be introduced where divorcing couples will no longer have to blame one another for their marital breakdown.

    This reform follows on from the landmark Tini Owens case in which the Supreme Court ruled Ms Owens failed to demonstrate her relationship had broken down because of her husband’s unreasonable behaviour and could not divorce Mr Owens until five years had passed.

    Changes to the outdated divorce laws would establish a minimum six-month timeframe for couples to ‘reflect’ on their decision and remove the ability to contest a divorce.

    What are the current grounds for divorce?

    Under the Matrimonial Causes Act 1973, spouses are forced to prove their partner is at fault through adultery, desertion or unreasonable behaviour. If both parties agree to the divorce, they must be separated for two years. Where there is no fault or consent to the divorce, applicants are required to wait until they have been living apart for five years.

    Ministers are acting to update the 50-year-old divorce laws after a public consultation found the current system works against any prospect of reconciliation, in addition to having a damaging effect on children by undermining the parent’s relationship.

    Critics also believe that the fault-based system forces parties to accuse each other of bad behaviour if they do not want to wait years before obtaining a divorce.

    The Justice Secretary stated:

    “Hostility and conflict between parents leave their mark on children and can damage their life chances.

    “While we will always uphold the institution of marriage, it cannot be right that our outdated law creates or increases conflict between divorcing couples.”

    The Ministry of Justice has said the new no-fault divorce laws will be introduced ‘as soon as parliamentary time allows’.

    Contact our Divorce and Family Lawyers Guildford, Portsmouth & Southampton

    If you are considering getting a divorce in England, you need first-class legal advice and representation from a specialist divorce lawyer. Get in touch with Child Law Partnership solicitors today via the online enquiry form.

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    Inquiry into missing Bristol boy treated as child abduction

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    Avon and Somerset police are treating eight-year-old Angelo Jurado-Marmolejo’s disappearance as a child abduction.

    Angelo was reported missing when his father, Rafael Jurado-Cabello, failed to return him to his mother’s home after a pre-arranged visit on the 2nd March 2019. The police have confirmed that Mr Jurado-Cabello, a Spanish national, is “now in breach of a court order and is wanted on suspicion of child abduction” and believe that Angelo may have been taken abroad.

    It emerged during a public hearing that Mr Jurado-Cabello had previously abducted Angelo after a half-term holiday in February 2017 and was not returned to his mother until the following month. A family court ruled that Mr Jurado-Cabello was “obsessed with negative feelings” towards Angelo’s mother – Karol Marmolejo – and that Angelo should live with his mother and spend time with his father.

    To reduce the risk of Mr Jurado-Cabelo abducting Angelo for a second time, he was required to hand over his passport and Spanish identity card at the beginning of each visit. However, it is suspected he provided false travel documents when collecting Angelo from City Academy after football practice on the 2nd March.

    Judge Nicholas Marston said:

    “This is a very serious matter. I want to stress that although the parents are not from this country, Angelo is a little Bristolian boy.”

    Detective Inspector Matt Lloyd, of Avon & Somerset Police, stated:

    “Our immediate priority is to locate Angelo. We believe Rafael Jurado-Cabello may have taken Angelo abroad and we’re making further inquiries with the Spanish authorities to locate him as soon as possible.”

    Det Insp Matt Lloyd went on to say that while there is no thought that Angelo is at risk of physical harm, “it’s the emotional separation from his mum and brother and his friends and family.”

    Angelo’s parents are both Spanish and moved to Bristol from Spain in 2012. Detectives in the UK are currently working alongside the Spanish authorities in an attempt to find the young boy.

    Contact our Abduction & Child Law Solicitors

    For expert legal guidance and representation on child abduction, or if you have a general inquiry about any family issues, get in touch with our qualified child law solicitors today via the online enquiry form.

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    Divorces granted to wives has nearly halved since 1993

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    The Marriage Foundation recently commissioned new data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) to discover the number of divorces in England and Wales, the duration of the marriages, and whether the divorce was granted to the husband or wife.

    In 2017, there were 55,689 fewer divorces granted to wives compared with the peak year of 1993; a 47 per cent drop from 118,401 to 62,712. According to the recent report from The Marriage Foundation, there was only a 15 per cent fall in divorces granted to husbands (from 46,271 to 38,957) during the same period.

    Divorces granted by previous marital status

    The ONS data was broken down into three main categories to determine the difference in divorce figures when marital status before marriage was considered:

    1. Single
    2. Divorced
    3. Widowed

    Previously Single Marital Status

    During 2017, the research revealed 23,329 first-time husbands who filed for divorce were divorcing a woman who had also never been married before. This was a drop of more than 6,000 from 2012 when 29,721 divorces were granted to the husband. Although a higher figure, similar findings were found for previously single women. 37,217 wives were granted a divorce where both parties were in their first marriage in 2017; a fall of over 16,000 in just five years (53,930 were filed in 2012).

    Previously Divorced Marital Status

    3,417 men filed for divorce from a woman who had been married before; a small drop on the 3,767 recorded in 2012. Those previously single women who applied for divorce from a husband who had been married more than once fell 1,612 compared with 2012’s figures (from 7,366 to 5,754).

    Previously Widowed Marital Status

    The number of men granted a divorce where the woman had been previously widowed fell from 114 to 90 in five years. This compares with 96 that were granted to a first-time wife from their previously widowed husbands in 2017, 30 petitions less than half a decade ago.

    Contact our Divorce Lawyers Basingstoke, Guildford, Portsmouth & Southampton

    If you are considering getting a divorce, you need specialist legal advice and representation from a qualified family lawyer. Get in touch with Child Law Partnership solicitors today via the online enquiry form.

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    No evidence that children of single-parent households are negatively impacted, new study finds

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    A study conducted by Gingerbread – a charity supporting single-parent families – and the University of Sheffield, has revealed that the wellbeing of children living with a single parent is the same, if not higher, than those in a two-parent family household.

    Key findings from the report

    The study – named Family Portrait: Single parent families and transitions over time – was conducted over six years with more than 27,800 households with children examined. Released at the end of last year, the report measures the children’s wellbeing by looking at three key factors: ‘life satisfaction’, ‘feelings about their family’ and ‘the quality of relationships with peers’. On all accounts, the report concluded that there was no evidence that children’s wellbeing was negatively affected if they were living or have lived in a single-parent household compared with those living in two-parent families.

    Children’s Wellbeing

    The children in the study were asked to self-report on their wellbeing and rate their feelings on their family and peer relationships on a scale up to five.

    For ‘life satisfaction’, children who had always lived with a single parent ranked higher than those who were in two-parent households. Children in single-parent families believed their life satisfaction sat at 2.22 out of 5. This was closely followed by those who had lived with a single parent at some point (2.19 out of 5) and then those living in two-parent households at 2.02 out of 5.

    A similar pattern was revealed when asked how they feel about their family: those who had always lived with a single parent or had previously lived with a single parent were more positive – averaging at 1.71 – compared with those who had never lived with a single parent (1.54).

    The final self-report saw children who lived in single-parent households have less problematic relationships among their peers than those in two-parent families. Children from two-parent households ranked peer problems at 4.62, followed by those who had always lived in a single parent family at 4.02 and then children who had previously lived with a single parent at 3.92.

    Despite other data suggesting that 1 in 4 households are headed by single parents, the report noted around a third (32%) of families will have been a single parent family for at least some point over the six years examined. This concludes that single parenthood is much more common than is typically suggested.

    1 in 7 single parents get married or cohabit

    14% of single parents were reported to transition out of single parenthood by either getting married or cohabiting with a partner – and of these parents, almost three quarters re-partnered with the child’s biological parent.

    The study looked at different family types over the course of six years and examined any changes in the family structure:

    • 84% of single parents due to bereavement remained single, while 16% re-partnered.
    • 94% of those married stayed the same, while 3% cohabited and 3% separated or divorced
    • 77% of those cohabiting remained in their living situation, while 11% married and 12% separated.

    Consistent with official statistics, the study proved that cohabiting parents were the most likely family group to experience a change in their living situation. However, the report discovered that cohabiting was as important a route to marriage as single parenthood.

    Professor Nathan Hughes from the University of Sheffield commented on the data:

    “These findings have clear implications for how single-parent families should be understood, valued and supported. Stereotyping single parenthood as a problem is inaccurate and immoral.”

    Chief Executive at Gingerbread, Rosie Ferguson, concluded:

    “Our report with the University of Sheffield debunks myths about single-parent households and significantly, it shows that children are not negatively impacted if raised by a lone parent. What is important to a child’s wellbeing is the presence of positive relationships.”

    Contact our Child and Family Lawyers Basingstoke, Salisbury & Portsmouth

    For expert legal guidance about child issues, or a general query about family law, get in touch with our specialist family law solicitors today via the online enquiry form.

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    Damages for costs of raising a healthy child rejected

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    A man whose ex-partner had their embryos wrongfully implanted against his will has lost his appeal against the fertility clinic to be awarded damages for the pecuniary loss of bringing up his daughter.

    The case ARB v IVF Hammersmith concerned a couple who had created embryos for use in their IVF treatment, but who separated before agreeing to begin the fertility treatment. Without the father’s consent, the mother had their IVF clinic breach their contract with the couple and implant some of the embryos, and she subsequently gave birth to a daughter. Eight years later, the father has lost his appeal to be awarded damages for the costs, past and future, incurred by bringing up the child.

    Citing authorities including McFarlane v Tayside Health Board, the Court followed the precedent in tort that damages should not be awarded for the financial loss of raising a healthy child. The precedent is based on multiple contentious policy concerns, including recognising that the ‘blessing’ of a healthy child is such that it would be wrong to award damages for its existence.

    These policy concerns have been met with resistance from some judges and academics, who argue that a child can be deeply valued and loved but still be financially expensive, and that the court should place the financial burden on the parties responsible for the wrongful conception, in this case, the IVF clinic who breached their contract.

    Contact our Child Law Solicitors Reading, Portsmouth, Basingstoke, Guildford, Salisbury & Southampton

    If you need specialist legal advice about child law in England, get in touch with a member of our qualified team today via the online enquiry form.

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    77 divorce applications filed on New Year’s Day

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    Between Christmas Eve and New Year’s Day, 455 online divorce applications were lodged in England and Wales. According to the Ministry of Justice (MoJ), 26 people submitted applications on Christmas Eve, 13 on Christmas Day, 23 people filed on Boxing Day and 77 on New Year’s Day.

    Amicable, a divorce support service, revealed that online searches for ‘divorce’ are 25% higher in January compared with any other time of the year. Relationship support charity, Relate, also report a 13% rise in calls and 58% spike in website users in the first month of every year. Experts believe that disputes arising from trying to create the perfect Christmas in addition to financial troubles over the festive break are the main reasons why married couples decide to split at this time of the year.

    Simone Bose, a Relate counsellor, explained:

    “No one’s saying that Christmas itself leads to divorce and separation, but if you’re already experiencing issues then added ‘festive pressures’ such as financial woes and family rows can push things from bad to breaking point.”

    Digital Divorces

    From April 2018, couples have had the opportunity to complete the divorce application process using the internet. Since the platform was opened, more than 23,000 online divorce applications have been made.

    The introduction of the online divorce petition service is part of a £1 billion plan to modernise the current justice system. The MoJ reported that the newly digitised system for applying for divorce has cut application form errors from 40% to less than 1%. On average, the time taken to complete a divorce application has also reduced by more than half an hour.

    Grounds for divorce

    In order to apply for a divorce in England and Wales, you must have been married for at least a year and able to prove your marriage has broken down due to one of the following:

    • Adultery
    • Unreasonable behaviour
    • Desertion
    • You have lived apart for more than two years and both parties agree to the divorce
    • If your spouse does not agree to the separation, you must have lived apart from your partner for at least five years

    Contact our Family Lawyers Basingstoke, Salisbury & Portsmouth

    If you are considering a divorce and need expert legal advice and representation, get in touch with one of our specialist divorce solicitors today via the online enquiry form.

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    How the UK-EU divorce could impact divorcees

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    The Law Society has issued guidance for its members on the effect of a no-deal Brexit on family law. The future is unclear, and the UK faces a loss of protection for some vulnerable parties, including the victims of domestic violence.

    The president of the Society, Christina Blacklaws, told the Law Gazette last month that “there is little doubt that resolving disputes will become much more complex and much more costly.”

    On the subject of divorce, the Law Society predicts that after a no-deal Brexit, unless the states involved in a multi-national case are members of the Hague Convention on divorce, there could be conflicts of jurisdiction and parallel proceedings, which would be more expensive for the parties involved.

    Currently, if you are the victim of domestic violence or harassment, and a national court has issued a civil law protection order in your favour, this will be recognised and enforced anywhere in the EU. The UK plans to repeal the Regulation which controls this, and it is unclear what the government intends to do to ensure UK judgments are respected in other EU states post-Brexit.

    It is possible that the UK could negotiate deals with individual EU states on family law matters, but this will require the authorisation of the European Commission. The UK has also disclosed that it intends to negotiate a treaty with the EU on issues relating to civil justice and cooperation in family law, which the Law Society has stated it would encourage.

    Contact our Divorce Lawyers Basingstoke, Guildford & Southampton

    For specialist legal advice on separation and divorce in England, do not delay and speak with one of our professional and proactive divorce solicitors today via the online enquiry form.

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