Mrs Justice Lieven appointed Family Division Liaison Judge for the Midland Circuit
The President of the Family Division, following consultation with the Lord Chancellor, has announced the appointment of a Family Division Liaison Judge.
Mrs Justice Lieven has been appointed as the Family Division Liaison Judge for the Midland Circuit, for a period of four years, with effect from 13 April 2021 where she will succeed Mrs Justice Knowles.
25/4/21
Lady Black retires from the Supreme Court
The Rt Hon Lady Black of Derwent retires as a Supreme Court Justice on 10 January 2021. The President of the Supreme Court, Lord Reed, has made a short video to pay tribute to her work and to say a fond farewell to her on behalf of everyone at the Supreme Court.
Lady Black was called to the Bar in 1976 at Inner Temple. For a period in the 1980s she taught law at Leeds Polytechnic. She later specialised in family law, became a Queen s Counsel in 1994 and was appointed a deputy High Court judge in 1996 and a Recorder in 1999.
M v H ( private law vaccination) [2020] EWFC 93
MacDonald J granted a specific issue order authorising the administration of vaccinations to two children, ages 6 and 4 in accordance with the NHS vaccination schedule. In doing so he considered the role of the court in this area, the application of the principles set out in Re H (A Child: Parental Responsibility: Vaccination) [2020] EWCA Civ 664 in private law disputes, the use of expert evidence and the approach to proportionality under Article 8.
There was a background private law dispute which was being dealt with by a district judge where, following a fact-finding hearing there had been a series of hearings to re-establish the children spending time with the father. A final hearing was listed on 21 December 2020. The father s original application had included an application for a specific issue order on MMR vaccination but that was amended to encompass all the normal childhood vaccinations. The DJ (in liaison with the
W (Children: Reopening/Recusal) [2020] EWCA Civ 1685
Successful appeal of a decision to set aside findings of fact in private law proceedings because of judicial recusal and the appearance of bias
This case concerned the mother s application to appeal the decision of HHJ Duggan to set aside findings of fact because of the appearance of judicial bias. In February 2020, DJ Wylie undertook a three-day fact-finding exercise into the mother s allegations that the father had perpetrated domestic abuse against her and two other women (HH and LM). The Judge made six of the findings sought (one of which had already resulted in a guilty verdict in the criminal courts), and on 16 April 2020, gave directions for further evidence and listed a final welfare hearing. The date of final hearing was subsequently adjourned twice, because of the unavailability of the CAFCASS officer, and in the interim, the father applied for contact and to reopen the findings of fact.