For our eleventh episode, the Voice of the Child speaks with Cyrus Larizadeh QC, the Chair of the Family Law Bar Association (FLBA), on the new measures in place in family courts and his concerns around child contact and domestic abuse in children cases.
Conflicting guidance on what birth parents should expect in terms of contact with their children in public family law cases during the Coronavirus outbreak has created uncertainty, and anxiety, for both parents and children.
A growing number of reported cases now feature parents being denied contact in both private and public family law cases, causing worry around the welfare of the children involved.
Cyrus discusses the new regulations for family cases, incoming guidance on contact for birth parents in child protection cases, whether disagreements on contact with local authorities and separating parents can be resolved in court during the lockdown, and potential test cases where there isn’t agreement between the local authority and the parents, who may feel councils are in beach of their statutory duty to promote contact orders.
The podcast includes a discussion on the FLBA’s concerns around the rise in domestic violence cases, transparency inside the court system and Cyrus’ predictions for the future of family law.
Cyrus also reveals that the Court of Appeal has quietly shelved its live-streaming of family cases, despite announcing the move last month. The Voice of the Child asks him why.
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