Financial Hearings Arising on Divorce – The Family Courts 6 Months Post Lockdown

Six months on, we examine the true impact of the closure of some courts in the early days of the pandemic and how the family justice system is coping with a largescale move to remote hearings.  The reality is that the family courts were already struggling to list hearings and the system has unfortunately been impacted further by the pandemic.

Across the family team, we have seen a shift towards directions in financial cases being agreed and First Directions Hearings (“FDA”) avoided, which is beneficial for clients as they save the costs of the hearing.  Unfortunately, most of us have also experienced cases being taken out of the Court list by the Court at the last minute meaning the hearing does not go head, and in some cases barristers’ fees are already due.

In private law Children cases, involving disputes between parents, hearings are taking place again mainly in a remote setting with some attended hearings happening in certain courts.

The content of a podcast entitled “Coronavirus: the view from the bench” hosted by experienced barrister Edward Boydell of Pump Court Chambers in discussion with District Judge Hudd of the Central Family Court (“CFC”) offers some useful insight as to the workings of the leading Family Court in the country.

It seems that the CFC managed to keep disruption to a minimum, which is not necessarily the case for some regional family courts who closed their doors altogether. We understand that in some children cases hearings are being held in person but in the main, divorce and financial matters are being conducted remotely.

A question which I have pondered and one which was put to DJ Hudd was whether we will ever return to attending first hearings (FDAs) in financial matters.  The response was that this is being discussed but a view shared within the family team is that most can be agreed in advance and those which cannot, can be dealt with either on paper or by telephone. Not only does this preserve court time but it will preserve costs for your client.  Experienced family solicitors should be able to agree directions or indeed narrow the issues to provide for an effective telephone hearing.

When DJ Hudd was asked about the downside of the new remote system, the filing of last-minute documents was raised as an issue and the practice of sending multiple attachments when one email with all attachments makes it much easier for the Judge to consider.

The issue of technology was raised, and it is clear that there is still a patchwork of platforms being used by the courts up and down the country.  The CFC is now using the Cloud Video Platform (“CVP”) but others are using MS Teams and the occasional Zoom hearing.  HMCTS has had to expedite the roll out of CVP technology which had been planned for rollout over the next 5 to 10 years.  With the majority of hearings in private law being by telephone, our experience of CVP remains limited but feedback from other users has not always been positive.

When asked about workloads and cases, in keeping with our own experiences of cases coming into the team, DJ Hudd reported a rise in variation of maintenance applications.  She also commented that some parties are delaying trial in light of income streams having been impacted by Covid-19.  In addition, DJ Hudd noted the impact of the freeze on possession proceedings in cases where there are investment properties to consider and how the timing of the sale is impacting the overall settlement between parties.

In terms of when parties can expect their cases to be listed, it was suggested that in the CFC Financial Dispute Resolution hearings are taking 4 to 5 months to be listed, as opposed to the previous  3 month wait, with Final Hearings being impacted most resulting in some cases being listed in the Summer 2021. We are experiencing longer delays in other courts with directions hearings taking at least 3 to 4 months to be relisted.

IBB Family team are abreast of all developments and are aware of the impact these time scales mean to people’s lives, and can advise on the best way for clients to navigate the most direct and cost-effective route to resolving their disputes.  There are also Alternative Dispute Resolution processes and private hearings which we can advise on which will avoid clients having to enter into a Court process which is fraught with delays.

Speak to our Family Law specialists

IBB Law’s family law practice can provide expert advice on all family law issues. To contact the family law team please email  familylaw@ibblaw.co.uk or call 03456 381 381.