Our articles are written by experts in their field and include barristers, solicitors, judges, mediators, academics and professionals from a range of related disciplines. Family Law provides a platform for debate for all the important topics, from divorce
and care proceedings to transparency and access to justice. If you would like to contribute please email
editor@familylaw.co.uk.
Private lives not private after all?
© Copyright LexisNexis 2024. All rights reserved.
Should financial remedy claims be heard in public or private and what will the long-term consequences be for the rule of law?
Introduction
In
Appleton & Gallagher v News Group Newspapers and PA [2015] EWHC 2689 Mostyn J gave News Group Newspapers (NGN) permission to appeal his decision. It is hoped the Court of Appeal will resolve the 'unhappy divergence of judicial approach'. Should financial remedy claims be heard in open court for the general public to observe? Or should they be held in private with access only to accredited press officials working within tight reporting restrictions? What would the different outcomes mean for practitioners? How should the outcome affect future case management decisions?
An appeal in this case is designed to resolve a long-standing judicial debate. In recent years that debate has been characterised by the conflicting indications of Mostyn J and Holman J.
The current position
The privacy of financial remedy claims is determined primarily by FPR 27.10 and 27.11. FPR 27.10 states:
'(1) Proceedings to which these rules apply will be held in private except -
(a) where these rules or any...
Read the full article here.
