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FLW January 2010 Family Law Week March 2015 - 1 March 2015 News 1 Articles Finance & Divorce Update February 2015 21 “Nowadays not all law can be simple law; but the best 26 law remains simple law” Schedule 1 to The Children Act 1989: Not Just for 29 NEWS Wags The Rise and Rise of Damages in Human Rights 32 French court prohibits parents naming Claims Something must be done – will a partial return to 38 child ‘Nutella’ Calderbank fit the Bill (or at least reduce it)? Mitochondrial Donation 42 A French family court has prohibited a couple from naming International Children Law Update: February 2015 45 their daughter Nutella after the hazelnut spread with cocoa. Surrogacy Law Update (February 2015) 51 The couple, from Valenciennes in northern France, had A Theory of Everything – Special Contributions in 55 sought to register the name following the baby's birth in Matrimonial Finance September 2014. The matter was referred to a family court Cases judge. Re M (Republic of Ireland) (Child's Objections) 59 The court ruled that "the first name Nutella, given to the (Joinder of Children as Parties to Appeal) [2015] child, is that of the commercial brand of a spread" and would EWCA Civ 26 cause "mockery or disobliging remarks". The girl has now In the matter of Capita Translation and Interpreting 60 been named Ella. Limited [2015] EWFC 5 Re S-W (children) [2015] EWCA Civ 27 62 Resolution concerned that Financial Arif v Anwar [2015] EWHC 124 (Fam) 63 Lancashire County Council v T & Others (Habitual 64 Remedies Working Group report Residence: Care Proceedings) [2014] EWHC 3321 focuses on high net worth cases NG v Sec of State for Works & Pensions and Another 65 (CSM) [2015] UKUT 20 AAC Resolution has welcomed the majority of the Re MM (A Child: Relocation) [2014] EWFC B176 recommendations in the final report of the Financial SC v YD [2014] EWHC 2446 (Fam) 67 Remedies Working Group (FRWG), but remains concerned that the report and its recommendations focus largely on the Northamptonshire County Council v AS and Others 68 needs of high net worth families, rather than the average [2015] EWHC 199 U-B (A Child) [2015] EWCA Civ 60 family court user. X & Another v Z & Another [2015] EWCA Civ 34 69 The report, which can be downloaded here, is divided into BD v FD [2014] EWHC 4443 (Fam) 71 four chapters: IS (A Minor) v DBS & Another [2015] EWHC 219 72 Ÿ Chapter I - Procedure Sanchez v Oboz and Oboz [2015] EWHC 235 (Fam) 73 Ÿ Chapter II - Litigants in Person ZA v AS [2014] EWHC 2630 (Fam) 75 Ÿ Chapter III - Standard Orders in Financial Remedy Proceedings Re SSM (A Child )[2015] EWHC 327 (Fam) 76 Ÿ Chapter IV - Arbitration in Family Proceedings. Graham-York v York [2015] EWCA Civ 72 77 AB v TB (Temporary Removal to Jordan) [2014] EWHC 79 Jo Edwards, chair of Resolution, commented: 4663 (Fam) Re A (A Child) [2015] EWFC 9 80 "We welcome any move to make the family court more user-friendly, quicker to pass through and less expensive The Prospective Adopters v FB and Others [2015] 81 for court users, so we're pleased that the FRWG has taken EWHC 297 (Fam) on board some of our recommendations about Lindner v Rawlins [2015] EWCA Civ 61 83 appropriate streamlining. However, we still fear that the Dickson v Rennie [2014] EWHC 4306 (Fam) report's recommendations are most useful for cases G (A Child) [2015] EWCA Civ 119 85 involving wealthy litigants in contested proceedings. With more litigants in person coming before the courts JL v SL (No 1) [2014] EWHC 3658 (Fam) 86 JL v SL (No 2) [2014] EWHC 360 (Fam) 87 GENERAL EDITOR Family Law Week is published by A (Children) [2015] EWCA Civ 133 88 Re H (Children) [2015] EWCA Civ 115 Stephen Wildblood QC Law Week Limited Z-O'C (Children) [2014] EWCA Civ 1808 89 Greengate House Deputy Editor 87 Pickwick Road Claire Wills-Goldingham QC Re L (A Child) [2015] EWFC 15 90 Corsham Albion Chambers SN13 9BY Re A and B [2015] EWFC B16 91 Tel & Fax: 0870 145 3935 www.familylawweek.co.uk Family Law Week March 2015 - 2 than ever before, we would have liked to have seen the The report covers the findings from two quantitative data Working Group to delve more deeply into the issues collection exercises: facing the average court user. Ÿ A survey of mediation practitioners with a Legal Aid "In our consultation response we raised the need for the Agency (LAA) contract to collect data on MIAM and judiciary and others in a position to help litigants mediation workloads for privately funded clients in the navigating the family courts alone to help these litigants snapshot months of November 2013 and March 2014 understand the value of good, independent legal advice This was supplemented by an in-depth survey which and the role it plays in resolving disputes and settling collected detailed case characteristics from a small cases. I feel that the report of the Working Group does number of clients. not fully address this issue, which will continue to grow, placing more strain on the overburdened court system. Ÿ A court file review of 300 cases (150 private law children We do feel that the Working Group's reticence to and 150 contested finance cases) started in five court reintroduce the "Calderbank" without prejudice offer is locations between April 2012 and September 2013 to a missed opportunity to encourage incentives to settle. examine the proportion of applicants, including those We welcome the opportunity to discuss these issues publicly and privately funded, using MIAMs and further with the Working Group and other family justice mediation before applying to court. This was stakeholders." supplemented by short interviews with ten court staff. The Financial Remedies Working Group report is here. The report's conclusions include: Read Resolution's response to the consultation here. Ÿ Clients prefer separate MIAMs meetings, with 78% of all privately funded MIAMs being conducted separately. FGM in UK a bigger problem than Ÿ Privately funded mediation caseloads are weighted more towards property and finance and all-issues cases, realised compared to publicly funded mediation cases. Ÿ Referrals to MIAMs and mediations were mainly As the first prosecution for carrying out female genital through solicitors or self-referral, with self-referrals mutilation continues, returns from acute hospital providers slightly more common. An earlier report discussed how in England show that more than 500 new cases of FGM were mediators interviewed felt routes into mediation had reported in December 2014. changed post-LASPO and indicated that they had observed a substantial fall in the number of solicitor In the last three months of 2014 1946 newly identified cases referrals. of FGM reported nationally. Of these 47 concerned girls under the age of 18. In December there were 2,146 active Ÿ The indicated conversion rate of MIAMs to mediation is cases and 558 newly identified cases of FGM were reported around 66–76%. The survey suggests that this nationally. conversion rate is affected by certain characteristics of the clients involved, such as conversion being less likely John Cameron, head of the NSPCC helpline, was reported when couples attend MIAMs separately compared to as saying: together, and among younger rather than older clients. "These new figures indicate that female genital Ÿ Responses indicated that where proceedings were mutilation is a bigger problem in the UK than we started, applicants appeared to have attended MIAMs thought and there are obviously children at risk of being and/or to have attempted mediation beforehand, in a subjected to this cruel and unnecessary practice right minority of cases. now." Ÿ There was also a substantial minority of cases in which Dr Dhanuson Dharmasena, a junior registrar at Whittington either the applicant had not attended a MIAM, or it was Hospital in London, being tried for carrying out FGM, and unclear whether they had done so, and the non- Hasad Mohamed for aiding and abetting the doctor. attendance was not explained. For the official statistics concenring active and newly Ÿ There is a need for marketing and provision of MIAMs identified cases of FGM, see here. For a report on the trial, and mediation to cater at least in part for different see here. groups of potential litigants in children and finance cases. For example to younger (under 35), unmarried as well as married couples in children cases, and to Fall in solicitor referrals to MIAMs and somewhat older (over 35), divorcing couples in finance cases (though there may be overlaps between the two mediation confirmed by MoJ study types of cases). National Family Mediation, the largest of provider of Ÿ There is a need for MIAMs and mediation to be family mediation in England and Wales, says that a new promoted as options some time after separation to deal Ministry of Justice report outlining the findings of a family with disputes over existing arrangements for children, mediation research programme, "doesn't tell us a huge as well as at the point of separation when new amount we didn't already know." arrangements may need to be made. www.familylawweek.co.uk Family Law Week March 2015 - 3 Ÿ Prospective respondents as well as prospective minutes to reach its verdict. For The Guardian's coverage of applicants need to be willing to engage and explore the news story, click here. whether the process may be suitable for their cases. Alison Saunders said: Ÿ The frequency with which underlying issues of domestic violence and other safeguarding concerns were evident "It was right that we put this case before the court and in cases in the court file review appears to have on three separate occasions, once before trial and twice implications for MIAMs and mediation in children cases during the trial, the judge dismissed applications by the in particular.
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