Transparency in Family Courts

A debate has raged for some time as to whether the “closed” Family Court system is right in today’s open-information society. 

There are two sides to the debate. The first is society’s “strong legitimate interest” in understanding what Family Courts do and how they work. The second is the obvious need to safeguard individuals who turn to the Court for protection and resolution; as well as children who find themselves the subject of Court proceedings. 

The President of the Family Division has called for greater transparency and openness in the Family Courts. Suggested measures include: –

• wider publication of anonymised judgments;
• cooperation between the Family Court and Editors;
• making Court lists available to accredited media representatives and bloggers; and 
• establishing a Family Court online resource.

The Family Transparency Implementation Group [TIG] has been set up to manage and evaluate the implementation of these changes. The last published minutes for the TIG are March 2022 and can be found here.

...the time has come for accredited media representatives to be able, not only to attend hearings, but to report publicly on what they see and hear.

https://www.judiciary.uk/publications/transparency-in-the-family-courts-report/