Family Courts and the Media: Guide to Current Law Published

Following talks between the President of the Family Division, other senior members of the judiciary and the Newspaper Society, Society of Editors, and individual representatives of print and broadcasting media, a paper was commissioned to set out the current law affecting media access to and reporting of family courts.

The guide, by Adam Wolanski QC and Kate Wilson, has now been published by the Judicial Office. It describes in one document this complex, overlapping – and at times uncertain – area of law.

In the wake of the Justice Committee report (see NS News of  21 July) its publication is timely. The NS believes the paper will be a useful reference to the present state of the law, including its defects, and a starting point for fresh consideration of how media access and reporting of family courts can be improved whilst safeguarding the privacy of the families involved in proceedings.

The preface to the guide refers to the tension between these objectives, saying “the question is whether they are irreconcilable.” It is the firm view of the NS that the two positions need not be polarised and that both can be accommodated,  and we shall continue to press this point as the debate on improving openness and accountability in the family courts moves forward.

Details of  the NS submission to the Justice Committee in September 2010 can be found here.

For further information contact Sue Oake on 020 7632 7463 or email sue_oake@newspapersoc.org.uk.