Family Law Newsletter – Spire Barristers
‘Issue #35 of Spire Barristers’ Family Law Newsletter: edited by Connie Purdy and Taz Irshad; news and Case Reviews by Georgina Dalton.’
Spire Barristers, 22nd July 2020
Source: spirebarristers.co.uk
Category: remote hearings
‘Deepfake’ warning over online courts – Legal Futures
‘Video manipulation software, including ‘deepfake’ technology, poses problems for remote courts in verifying evidence and that litigants or witnesses are who they say they are, a report has warned.’
Legal Futures, 29th July 2020
Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk
Judge removed from child welfare case over ‘pejorative’ remarks about mother – The Guardian
‘A high court judge has been taken off a case centred on the care of a child after “pejorative comments” she made about the child’s mother were accidentally broadcast to people taking part in a hearing remotely.’
The Guardian, 25th July 2020
Source: www.theguardian.com
Guidance for litigants in person on remote hearings in the Family Court – Resolution
‘With the advent of the global pandemic hearings in the Family Court are increasingly being held remotely by telephone or on video conferencing software. This guide is designed to help you through the process and includes helpful information on how to prepare for the hearing, how to join a hearing and what to do during the hearing.’
Resolution, 14th July 2020
Source: https://resolution.org.uk/
COVID 19: an update on remote hearings and making them effective – 3PB
‘Much has been written about the dramatic decrease in civil hearings as a result of the COVID 19 pandemic. A survey conducted by Kate Brunner QC and I for the Western Circuit showed a 75% decrease in the number of hearings and a 58% reduction in work done by the Bar.’
3PB, 6th July 2020
Source: www.3pb.co.uk
Vos: Crisis must be followed by “blue sky thinking” – Litigation Futures
‘The Chancellor of the High Court has said “the one thing” he really wants to come out of the coronavirus crisis is “blue sky thinking” about how to improve commercial dispute resolution.’
Litigation Futures, 7th July 2020
Source: www.litigationfutures.com
New video platform to be rolled out across civil courts – Litigation Futures
‘The new video platform enabling more remote cases to be heard in the criminal courts will rolled out to the civil courts over the coming months, the Ministry of Justice confirmed yesterday.’
Litigation Futures, 2nd July 2020
Source: www.litigationfutures.com
How Judges Make their Decisions – is witness demeanour a myth? – Family Law Week
‘Madeleine Whelan, barrister of Fourteen, considers how much weight judges might give to witnesses’ demeanour when evaluating their evidence in the light of a recent judgment by Mrs Justice Lieven.’
Family Law Week, 29th June 2020
Source: www.familylawweek.co.uk
Assume hearings are going to be remote, says judge – Litigation Futures
‘Parties should assume hearings will be held remotely at the moment and explain why it would not be just to do so if they want one in person, a High Court judge has ruled.’
Litigation Futures, 25th June 2020
Source: www.litigationfutures.com
Remote hearings, hybrid hearings, adjourned hearings – Transparency Project
‘Lancashire County Council v M & Ors (COVID-19 Adjournment Application) [2020] EWFC 43 is another case (like Re C that we wrote on here) where an extraordinarily large number of professionals spent many hours working on a notion that was dismissed by the judge, although this time in the Family Court, not the Court of Appeal. Although the judge, Mr Justice MacDonald, emphasised that a case management decision about holding a remote or hybrid or full-face hearing should not normally take very long, he also explained why he had to spell out his reasons in more than 60 paragraphs.’
Transparency Project, 26th June 2020
Source: www.transparencyproject.org.uk
Commercial Court eyes future of remote hearings – Litigation Futures
‘The Commercial Court has been able to carry on largely as normal while operating remotely, with interlocutory hearings likely to stay that way for some time at least, it has emerged.’
Litigation Futures, 26th June 2020
Source: www.litigationfutures.com
Partially remote hearings in the Coroner’s Court: Chief Coroner’s Guidance No. 38 – Parklane Plowden Chambers
‘The Chief Coroner has published his Guidance No 38, headed “Remote Participation in Coronial Proceedings via Video and Audio Broadcast”.’
Parklane Plowden Chambers, 17th June 2020
Source: www.parklaneplowden.co.uk
Virtual hearings with physical jury hubs hailed a success – Law Society’s Gazette
‘Virtual trials with physical jury hubs could be an effective way of clearing the significant Crown court backlog caused by Covid-19, academics evaluating the latest experiment from a legal thinktank have said.’
Law Society's Gazette, 19th June 2020
Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk
Guidance from the High Court on adjournments in care proceedings during the COVID-19 pandemic (A Local Authority v Mother and Ors) – 1 GC: Family Law
‘Liz Andrews, barrister at 1|GC Family Law reviews the judgment in A Local Authority v The Mother and others where Williams J was required to determine, in light of the guidance of the President of the Family Division alongside the recent decisions concerning adjournments during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, whether a fact-finding hearing taking place within long-running care proceedings was to continue following the conclusion of expert evidence and, if so, in what form, or whether the hearing should be adjourned to allow the lay parties to give evidence in person.’
1 GC: Family Law, 5th June 2020
Source: 1gc.com
Court of Appeal considers the cardinal points for remote hearings during the coronavirus (COVID19) pandemic (Re A (children) and Re B (Children)) – 1 GC: Family Law
‘On consecutive days, the Court of Appeal, which included the President of the Family Division, considered two decisions of the lower courts to conduct remote hearings, Re A in relation to a final hearing as to care and placement orders and Re B regarding an interim care order with a plan for removal. Matthew Fletcher, barrister at 1|GC Family Law, compares and contrasts the two decisions and analyses whether common threads emerge that could assist practitioners in advising clients and making submissions to the court as to whether a case is suitable for a remote hearing.’
1 GC: Family Law, 4th June 2020
Source: 1gc.com
Clin neg trial could be held remotely “as last resort” – Litigation Futures
‘A clinical negligence hearing is set to begin in person in the High Court today, although the judge ruled last week that it could be conducted remotely if there was no other option.’
Litigation Futures, 8th June 2020
Source: www.litigationfutures.com
Family President predicts “very radical reduction” in amount of time that courts afford to each hearing – Local Government Lawyer
‘It is unlikely that anything approaching a return to the normal court working environment will be achieved before the end of 2020 “or even the spring of 2021”, the President of the Family Division has said.’
Local Government Lawyer, 9th June 2020
Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk
Can a clinical negligence trial be heard remotely? – UK Human Rights Blog
‘Since lockdown the courts (and legal representatives) have been striving to hold remote hearings where possible. This had led to a flurry of new guidance (see for example CPR section AA Guidance for Queen’s Bench Division Court Users) — and the ability to view bookshelves in the studies of judges and legal representatives.’
UK Human Rights Blog, 9th June 2020
Source: ukhumanrightsblog.com
