NEW COURT REPORTING JUDGEMENTS ON THE WEB PILOT SCEME.

[Alison J Stevens]

Pilot Courts announced for reporting judgments

Judgments to be reported from Leeds, Cardiff & Wolverhampton in 12 month pilot

The Ministry of Justice has announced that selected judgments will, as of now be reported, from Leeds magistrates' court and Cardiff county and magistrates' court as part of a pilot scheme to further open up the family justice system.

The pilot scheme will run for 12 months, with Wolverhampton also reporting judgments from January, before the MoJ decides whether to roll out the scheme nationally.

Under the pilot the following types of cases may be considered for publication:

(i) an interim care/supervision order or a final order has been made at a hearing in either

* the family proceedings court (magistrates or DJ (MCs)
* county courts (Circuit or District judges or Recorders) or
* the High Court

and

(ii) the case falls under at least one of the following categories

* Either parent is given leave permanently to remove a child from the UK
* The final order prohibits direct contact between a child and either or both parents
* A final order is made in a Children Act public law case, including where contact continues
* The final order has depended on contested issues of religion, culture or ethnicity - The court has had to decide between medical or other expert witnesses where there were significant differences of opinion
* The court has had to decide significant human rights issues
* The Interim Care/Supervision Order was contested.

There will be other types of case in which publication of the judgment will be encouraged. The type of cases include:

* Contested cases where the facts, outcomes or solutions of the case would, in the discretion of the judge, be worthy of reporting publicly. So, for example, contested residence or disputed contact issues where the outcome is unusual
* contested adoption applications, applications to make and revoke placement orders; cases involving dispensation with consent and contact
* Emergency Protection Orders

The judgments will be reported on BAILII (www.bailii.org) after they have been approved by the judge.

At the same time, the MoJ reiterated that there will also be legislation in the forthcoming Parliamentary session allowing the reporting of the substance of proceedings by the media