Don't Get Caught Out By New Privacy Rules In Family Law Cases

Don't get caught out by the new rules on privacy laws which allow the media to attend many private family court hearings where previously they would have been excluded, says family law solicitor Anne Blenkinsop.

The rules, which came into force on April 27 2009, aim to encourage greater openness in future.

Anne, a partner and a collaborative lawyer* at leading regional law firm Furley Page, explains: "While the majority of such proceedings won't be of interest to the press, there is always the chance that a reporter will ask to be admitted to the court room. They might be present, for example, when the court fixes the time table for financial disclosure and valuation of assets - or at the final hearing at which the assets are divided.

"But even if they are permitted to attend a hearing, it doesn't give them the right to see private documents. Neither can they necessarily communicate information relating to the proceedings to the public."

The media is excluded when the identity and interests of a child, a party or a witness need protection. The court can make this decision after hearing representations or on its own initiative.

* The collaborative family law process is a relatively new way of dealing with family difficulties and aims to resolve disputes in a fair way. It involves private face-to-face meetings between a separating couple and their solicitors and is felt to be preferable to the standard procedure of negotiating by letter and telephone. Both parties and solicitors sign an agreement to resolve the couple's differences without going to court. If successful, their case would then be unlikely to attract any media attention.

Anne Blenkinsop of Furley Page Solicitors is a specialist in family law and the collaborative law proccess.

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