Family President issues guidance on urgent and out of hours applications to High Court Family Division

The President of the Family Division, Sir Andrew McFarlane, has issued practice guidance on urgent applications, out of hours applications and bundles in the Family Division of the High Court.

In relation to urgent applications the guidance reminds applicants that:

1. This list is exclusively reserved for cases where the circumstances are truly urgent and the welfare of the child(ren) requires an immediate hearing.

2. All hearings are to be in person, save where, in exceptional circumstances, a judge of the Family Division has approved remote attendance by one or more parties.

3. All cases shall be ready to be called on at 10.30am, save where a judge of the Division has approved listing the matter at another time.

4. All applications must be made on notice (including short notice) to the other party/parties unless there are compelling and cogent reasons why the application must be made without notice to the other party or to one or more of the other parties.

In relation to out of hours (OOH) applications, the President says that applicants must only seek an OOH hearing before a judge of the Family Division where:

5. The application could not reasonably have been made during the usual court hours and is of such urgency that it requires determination before a court sitting on the next working day.

6. The matter relates to (i) the exercise of the inherent jurisdiction of the High Court, (ii) the exercise of a power reserved to a tier 4 judge in the Family Court, or (iii) the exercise of a power reserved to a tier 3 judge in the Court of Protection.

7. All applications must be made on notice (including short notice) to the other party/parties unless there are compelling and cogent reasons why the application must be made without notice to the other party or to one or more of the parties.

In relation to bundles, the guidance says:

8. Please note that court bundles must be received two days before the hearing.

The guidance can be viewed here.