The Family Court and COVID-19: The Road Ahead

Sir Andrew McFarlane, President of the Family Division, has today published ‘The Road Ahead’ for the Family Court in England and Wales.

We have reached a juncture in the Family Court’s journey through the COVID 19 crisis when it is both possible and necessary to take stock and to consider the road ahead. It is possible to do this because, in contrast to the early weeks, there is now a bedrock of experience of remote working. This experience, both positive and negative, was in large part described and teased out in the enormously valuable and impressive report published by the Nuffield Family Justice Observatory on remote hearings in the Family Court in early May 2020. It is necessary to look at the road ahead because any earlier rose-tinted thoughts that ‘this will all be over by July’ have sadly evaporated and it is now clear that, whilst the situation of total lockdown may be gradually relaxed, the need for stringent social distancing restrictions is likely to remain for many months to come.

This document seeks to establish a broad framework for the Family Court by attempting to chart the road ahead over the next six months or more. It can be read below.