Court order

McKenzie Picave is delighted to announce the elevation of our very own Daniel Ryan to the new title of Lord Justice Daniel Ryan sitting in the Family division of the High Court. Okay, maybe not but just imagine if it did happen. We are not sure if we are excited by that prospect or terrified…[...]

How Much Are Your Children Worth? So, you have fallen out with your spouse and the fall out has been pretty messy so you have decided to take the matter into Family Court. There are accusations going backwards and forwards between you, so the Court proceedings are going to be protracted and ugly.[...]

The Only Person I Am Constantly With Is Me “It is still the case that 50/50 shared care arrangements between parents are comparatively rare in private law children cases. Research shows that a number of factors have to be in place, practical matters such as the close geographical proximity, but,[...]

An order that no step which could be taken by a parent in meeting his or her parental responsibility for a child, and which is of a kind specified in the order, shall be taken by any person without the consent of the court. Parents, guardians or holders of a residence order (“lives with” child[...]

Is indirect contact working to promote contact between parents and their children? We talk about indirect contact fairly regularly, as it is an important part of our work as McKenzie Friends. For those who are unfamiliar with the concept, indirect contact is when the court orders that a parent may[...]

Parental Alienation or Implacable Hostility: The Language of the Family Court Content warnings – this article discusses paedophilia and other paraphilias. It also mentions child suicide and rape. We believe it is important to be aware of the history behind the terms ‘parental alienation’[...]

Family court reporting to be allowed for the first time Until now, reporters have been able to observe hearings, but only report what was specifically allowed by a judge. From the end of January 2023, journalists in Leeds, Cardiff, and Carlisle will be able to report on what they see and hear during[...]

A case of extreme parental alienation was heard in London earlier this year, in which a father was being alienated by his ex-wife. She was manipulating the children, and going to extreme lengths to do so. This case had been to court several times, spanning many years. A team of psychiatrists had been[...]

“I did not know Mr Picave was a McKenzie Friend until the hearing was over. I assumed he was a solicitor…” – Mr D, Counsel, Family Law The quality and competence of a McKenzie Friend vary dramatically. The lack of regulation around McKenzie Friends means almost anyone can be[...]

A disgruntled Mum applies to the Family Court for a child arrangement order. She wants to ensure there is a framework in place for when and how the children’s Dad gets to see them. She wants that framework to be underpinned by a sealed Court Order. What she actually wants is to reduce the amount[...]

If you are going to find yourself in a Family Court case or you are already there, it seems appropriate to find out what you are walking into. The Family Court is just one judicial environment within a system which includes criminal courts, high courts, and civil courts. Fact: The Judge in family[...]

The courts are currently facing an ever growing backlog of cases, causing the wait between hearings to grow from weeks to months, but why has this happened, and how is it affecting the children going through this process? In February 2022, there was a hearing for a child arrangements order. The second[...]