Appeals and judicial review

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Brexit legislation tracker

This Practice Note tracks the progress of UK legislation introduced as part of the legislative project associated with the UK’s withdrawal from the

Decree absolute—divorce

Online divorceWhere a divorce is proceeding via the online service note that while rules relating to divorce proceedings are generally to be found in

Enforcement of financial orders

Coronavirus (COVID-19): Guidance has been issued, including by the President of the Family Division, regarding all proceedings in the Family Court in

Child Arrangements Programme—the procedure for section 8 applications

Coronavirus (COVID-19): Guidance has been issued, including by the President of the Family Division, regarding all proceedings in the Family Court in

Practice notes

Enforcing children orders (private law)

Coronavirus (COVID-19): Guidance has been issued, including by the President of the Family Division, regarding all proceedings in the Family Court in...

20th Oct

Practice notes

Procedure for an application for a non-molestation order

Procedure for an application for a non-molestation order—Covid-19In the exceptional circumstances of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic guidance has...

16th Oct

COVID-19

Practice notes

Child arrangements orders—residence

Coronavirus (COVID-19): Guidance has been issued, including by the President of the Family Division, regarding all proceedings in the Family Court in...

26th Sep

Practice notes

Leave to remove—external relocation

Coronavirus (COVID-19): Guidance has been issued, including by the President of the Family Division, regarding all proceedings in the Family Court in...

26th Sep

Practice notes

General principles—spousal and civil partner periodical payments

The court’s power to order periodical payments is contained in section 23(1)(a) of the Matrimonial Causes Act 1973 (MCA 1973) and Schedule 5, Part 1,...

26th Sep

Practice notes

General principles of consent orders

This Practice Note sets out the procedural steps to be taken where the parties have reached agreement by consent within financial remedy proceedings,...

26th Sep

Practice notes

Eligibility to apply under TOLATA 1996

Cohabitants do not have the same rights to make property claims as married couples or civil partners, and disputes between cohabitants regarding their...

26th Sep

Practice notes

Service of applications for matrimonial and civil partnership orders within the jurisdiction

This Practice Note is impacted by the exit of the UK from the EU on 31 January 2020. This has implications, inter alia, for practitioners considering...

26th Sep

Practice notes

FPR 2010, Part 18 applications—procedure

Coronavirus (COVID-19): Guidance has been issued, including by the President of the Family Division, regarding all proceedings in the Family Court in...

26th Sep

COVID-19

Practice notes

Child arrangements orders—contact

Coronavirus (COVID-19): Guidance has been issued, including by the President of the Family Division, regarding all proceedings in the Family Court in...

26th Sep

Practice notes

The ground for divorce

Bar on petition for divorce within one year of marriageA petition for divorce cannot be presented to the court before the expiration of one year from...

26th Sep

Practice notes

Family law training materials

In addition to signposting on Key aspects of family law practice, the following common areas of family law are introduced in this Practice Note (in...

26th Sep

Practice notes

Issuing financial proceedings in Form A (standard procedure)

The Family Procedure (Amendment) Rules 2018, SI 2018/440, amended the Family Procedure Rules 2010 (FPR 2010), SI 2010/2955, primarily introducing new...

25th Sep

COVID-19

Practice notes

Child arrangements orders

Child arrangements orders Since 22 April 2014, when section 12 of the Children and Families Act 2014 (CFA 2014) came into effect, the...

25th Sep

Practice notes

Case law relating to TOLATA 1996 claims

This Practice Note provides guidance on case law in relation to claims under the Trusts of Land and Appointment of Trustees Act 1996 (TOLATA 1996),...

25th Sep

Practice notes

Enforcing an order for sale

By virtue of section 24A of the Matrimonial Causes Act 1973 (MCA 1973) (and the Civil Partnership Act 2004 equivalent), the court can make an order...

Produced in partnership with David Salter, deputy High Court judge and Recorder 25th Sep

Most recent Appeals and judicial review content

Practice notes

Appeals—general principles, practice and procedure

Coronavirus (COVID-19): Guidance has been issued, including by the President of the Family Division, regarding all proceedings in the Family Court in...

26th Sep

Practice notes

Setting aside financial orders including Barder events where no error of the court alleged

BackgroundFor a considerable time there had been doubt and confusion as to the available routes of challenging a financial order (whether or not made...

Produced in partnership with David Salter, deputy High Court judge and Recorder 26th Sep

COVID-19

Practice notes

Preparation for an appeal and orders that may be made

Coronavirus (COVID-19): Guidance has been issued, including by the President of the Family Division, regarding all proceedings in the Family Court in...

26th Sep

Practice notes

Appeals in public law children proceedings

Coronavirus (COVID-19): Guidance has been issued, including by the President of the Family Division, regarding all proceedings in the Family Court in...

26th Sep

Practice notes

Applications for permission to appeal in the Family Court

Coronavirus (COVID-19): Guidance has been issued, including by the President of the Family Division, regarding all proceedings in the Family Court in...

26th Sep

Practice notes

Appeals to the Court of Appeal or the Supreme Court

Coronavirus (COVID-19): Guidance has been issued, including by the President of the Family Division, regarding all proceedings in the Family Court in...

26th Sep

Q&As

Where a party has not complied with the terms of a financial order, and intends to make an application to set aside that order on the basis of an inheritance received by the other party, will the set-aside application and any enforcement as to the non-compliance be dealt with at the same time or will the party who seeks to enforce the order need to make a separate application for enforcement?

A financial order may be set aside on the basis of fraud, mistake, material non-disclosure, or a significant change of circumstance (often referred to...

28th Sep

Q&As

An application to enforce an order made under the Children Act 1989 was heard in the absence of the respondent. The respondent has requested a copy of the applicant’s solicitor’s attendance note of the hearing. Is there an obligation on the applicant’s solicitor to provide a copy of the note?

Legal professional privilege is a concept that protects certain classes of documents from inspection by the other party to the case. Legal advice...

Produced in partnership with Chris Bryden of 4 King’s Bench Walk 28th Sep

Q&As

An application to enforce an order made under the Children Act 1989 was heard in the absence of the respondent. The respondent has requested a copy of the applicant solicitor’s attendance note of the hearing. Is there an obligation on the applicant’s solicitor to provide a copy of the note?

Legal professional privilege is a concept that protects certain classes of documents from inspection by the other party to the case. Legal advice...

Produced in partnership with Chris Bryden of 4 King’s Bench Walk 28th Sep

Q&As

A party gave an undertaking within a financial consent order to pay life insurance premiums, but subsequently stated that the undertaking was included by mistake and that the premiums were part of the provision for spousal maintenance. If the other party will not agree to the removal of the undertaking, how may this be rectified?

An undertaking may not be varied by a court, but the person making it may, on application, be released from its performance, often having offered an...

Produced in partnership with Paul Infield of The 36 Group 28th Sep

Q&As

Where a final order has been made in financial remedy proceedings some time ago, and it subsequently transpires that the children of the family may not be the husband's biological children, would this amount to a Barder event?

Applications to set aside a final order made within financial remedy proceedings should be made in accordance with the Family Procedure Rules (FPR...

Produced in partnership with Katherine Illsley of 4 King’s Bench Walk 28th Sep

Q&As

Can an order for costs in divorce proceedings be set aside?

It is ordinarily the case in family proceedings (save for certain excluded types of application) that each party bears their own costs. While the...

Produced in partnership with Chris Bryden of 4 King’s Bench Walk 28th Sep

Q&As

A final order has been made by lay justices under section 13 of the Children Act 1989. That order was appealed and the appeal was dismissed by a circuit judge. Is permission required for a second appeal and would that appeal be heard by the Court of Appeal as opposed to the High Court? If not what is the correct procedure?

Second appealsWhere an appeal from a first instance decision in a private children case has been determined, a party would require permission to bring...

Produced in partnership with Kyle Squire of 5 Pump Court 28th Sep

Q&As

What is the impact on appeal proceedings in relation to a final financial remedy order where decree absolute has not yet been pronounced and one of the parties dies?

The court has the power to make final orders in financial remedy proceedings on the pronouncement of decree absolute. Other than certain interim...

Produced in partnership with Chris Bryden of 4 King’s Bench Walk 28th Sep

Q&As

When appealing a decision of a district judge at a financial remedy final hearing, what will be the court’s approach to costs? Do the Family Procedure Rules 2010 or the Civil Procedure Rules 1998 apply? If the appellant succeeds on some, but not all, of their grounds of appeal, how will the court determine the issue of costs?

The Family Procedure Rules 2010 (FPR 2010), SI 2010/2955, r 28.3(1) states that: ‘Rule 44.2(1), (4) and (5) of the CPR do not apply to financial...

Produced in partnership with Paul Infield of The 36 Group 28th Sep

Q&As

Is a specific form of wording required in relation to the Family Procedure Rules 2010 (FPR 2010), PD 30A, para 5.11 as to a certificate to be signed by the appellant’s solicitor or counsel to the effect that the appellant has read and understood FPR 2010, PD 30A, para 5.10, and that the composition of the appeal bundle complies with FPR 2010, PD 30A, para 5.10?

The Family Procedure Rules 2010, PD 30A, para 5.11 (FPR 2010) provides in relation to appeals to the Family Court or the High Court that:‘Where the...

28th Sep

Q&As

What is the procedure to obtain a Family Court hearing transcript? Is a fee payable?

An application for a transcript is made in Form EX107 (Request for transcription of court or tribunal proceedings). See also notes for guidance (Form...

28th Sep

Q&As

Where a party disclosed significant debts and there was an apparent risk of bankruptcy, but later appears to have sufficient assets or income to purchase a property, what are the considerations for a potential application to set aside a financial consent order?

A failure to disclose a material fact or document could justify setting aside a financial order, but whether or not the order will be set aside will...

28th Sep

Practice notes

Judicial review—what it is and when it can be used

What is Judicial Review?Judicial review is a process by which the courts exercise a supervisory jurisdiction over the exercise of public functions by...

Produced in partnership with Mathew Purchase of Matrix Chambers and Dr Mirza Ahmad of St Philips Chambers 29th Sep

Practice notes

Costs for judicial review—general principles

General rule on costs in judicial reviewThe general rule in relation to costs in judicial review, as in other proceedings, is that costs follow the...

Produced in partnership with Morayo Fagborun Bennett of Hardwicke Chambers 29th Sep