Evidence, Practice and Procedure: Children proceedings – evidence from ‘protected’ witnesses

The status of the evidence of children and of vulnerable witnesses has twice been before the Court of Appeal recently. Re J (A Child) [2014] EWCA Civ 875 [2014] 2 FLR (forthcoming) was a further rerun of the Supreme Court case (via Pauffley J in the Family Division) of Re A (Sexual Abuse: Disclosure) [2012] UKSC 60  [2013] 1 FLR 948. The evidence of (a vulnerable witness (X) in child contact proceedings could not be relied on said the Court of Appeal against the father applicant (paras [104] and [110]) after various efforts had been made by Pauffley J to deal with the evidence in a way which was fair to the father.

In Re B (Child Evidence) [2014] EWCA Civ 1015 the Court of Appeal considered how a court in private children proceedings should receive evidence from another child of the family. She was not a party but might be able to give evidence relevant to findings of fact in the proceedings in question. Her mother’s partner was seeking contact with...