Introduction- What is a family?

Question 1

what is the 1st thing to consider?

Answer 1

family means diff things to diff people, could create fam by:

• blood ties
• self definiton
• adoption
• re marriage

Question 2

what is the basics of family law?

Answer 2

How they treat these units

Question 3

leading case for what is a family?

Answer 3

Fitzpatrick v Sterling Housing Association Ltd. [2000]

Question 4

what was mentioned in Fitzpatrick v Sterling Housing Association Ltd. [2000]? (3)

Answer 4

• After 2000 it was about what you did
• before 2000 law was concerned with not function of ur family
• if married definitely a family- if no can be

Question 5

what have not all families been treated as?

Answer 5

Not all families have been treated equally. Same sex couples/marriages/civil partnerships

Question 6

Cases for not all families have been treated equally? (3)

Answer 6

• Wilkinson v Kitzinger [2007]
• aim to obtain recognition in the UK of a same sex marriage that took place in Canada - Civil Partnership act 2004 - same sex couples act 2013
• Burdern v UK (2008)- two sisters aiming to avoid paying inheritance tax on their home.
  Court dismissed action that cohabiting siblings should be given the same rights at married and those in civil partnerships or
  marriage.

-Mendoza v Ghaidan [2004]
Same-sex couple seeking succession in a statutory tenancy
This case demonstrated a move away from the traditional view of the family

Question 7

Impact of Article 8 ECHR – respect for private and family life? (6)

Answer 7

A married couple
A separated couple with a child 
Unmarried parents with a child 
A couple with a foster child 
A child born out of one night stand 
A child who has no contact with the father

Question 8

defining families?

Answer 8

• Families - blood, marriage, adoption
• Nuclear Family- parents, dependant children
• Extended Families- nuclear and grandparents etc
• Kinships- larger family groups created by blood and marriage
• Households- not possibly family but share accom

Question 9

why is it difficult to define family & case?

Answer 9

shifting attitudes- gammons v ekin 1950

Question 10

what is family law? (7)

Answer 10

• divorce/dissolution
• financial orders
• employment law
• housing benefits
• taxation
• immigration
• also law that governs rels btw children and parents, adults in emotional rels, law -moral guardarian, no longer a society shifts law shifts exclude violent partners, law can intervene in family life, using article 8.

Question 11

What could you do before April 2014?

Answer 11

Apply to:
- magistrates
- county court
- high court
depending on what the claim was

Question 12

After April 2014 according to which act?

Answer 12

now we just have 1 family court, proposed by the Family Justice Review (FJR) and implemented by (s.17(3) Crime and Courts Act 2013)

Question 13

After an application is made?

Answer 13

1 of these judges wil be assigned to your case

lay justices= maintence payments,
District= divorce and financial orders
Circuit judges= not sure if married or not
High ct judges= parental orders anything to do with children

Question 14

Why the new court?

Answer 14

Held that old system dogged by delay, expense, democracy and lack of trust

Question 15

what is meant by delay and adversarial?

Answer 15

Delay- in decisions to deal with children e.g families breaking down = not cooperative
Adversarial = nature of proceedings, promoted change, brought about principles - optional

Question 16

Before review what could you get?

Answer 16

Before the review you could get legal aid, in effect the act removed public funding, legal aid budget was getting out of control, gov could not find it. Family law disputes are seen as private matters - so why public funding avail?

Question 17

When can you get legal aid?

Answer 17

fulfil the strict eligibility criteria:

Question 18

What is the eligibility crtieria?

Answer 18

-Financial and ..

• Domestic Violence
• Forced Marriage
• Protection of children (public law)
• Child Abuse (private law)
• A child is a party to the proceedings
• Child abduction
• Mediation
• Exceptional Circumstances

Question 19

what can you deffo not get legal aid?

Answer 19

you cannot get legal aid if you get divorced/financial help, this has had a dramtic effect on the court system

Question 20

e.g of legal aid? & why?

Answer 20

Husband looks for contact with child/wife looks for financial support u cannot get legal aid unles fulfill criteria

creates problems either comm with ex or have to become litigated person

Question 21

what is meant by financial?

Answer 21

have to be on low income + other categories

Question 22

What would you say in exam if legal aid were to come up?

Answer 22

why legal aid is withdrawn = costing too much money, private law issue (use this in exam – for eg, husband owed money she subjected to domestic abuse if you notice this you could say that she might need legal aid – help raise your answer)

Question 23

Domestic violence is defined by?

what is domestic violence?

Answer 23

LAPSO Schedule 1, paragraph 12(9)
-any incident of threatening behaviour, violence or abuse (whether psychological, physical, sexual, financial or emotional) between individuals who are associated with each other”- also includes coersive behaviour

Question 24

What does The Civil Legal Aid (Procedure) Regulations 2012, Regulation 33 explain?

Answer 24

explains what must be shown,not enough to show victim of dv you must prove it, which is difficult bc in fear of your life or being hurt, you have to produce evidence to show that dv is taken place

Question 25

What are the 5 things you have to prove victim of dv if on low income too?

Answer 25

• Must prove unspent conviction for dv,
• must prove there is a piece caution for dv,
• or there are criminal proceedings to deal with dv,
• or there is an injunction in force
• that proof has to be within 2 years of you proving your claim.

Question 26

disadvantages of proving?

Answer 26

• most dv no money for the process e,g injunction etc in order to gete legal aid. almost most dv dont report.
• problems with 24 month rule- frustrates purpose of act- r (rights of women) & secratary state of justice 2016- held 24 mnth rule ignores realities of dv and frustatres purpose of act therefore invalid.

Question 27

what are exceptional circumstances under?

Answer 27

s.10 LAPSO

Legal Aid, Punishment and Sentencing of Offenders Act 2012

Question 28

Why is it difficult to fall within exceptional circumstances?

Answer 28

it is really difficult to fall within these circumstances and the limited legal aid,
- hard to access justice - if low and can prove cat okay but if middle might not be able to access jsutice, so justice impaired.

Question 29

Why has funding been cut drastically?

Answer 29

legal aid large, alternative methods are better

Question 30

Alternatives to going to court ?

Answer 30

(Non Court Dispute Resolution (N-CDR)

• Mediation
• Collaborative Family Law
• Arbitration

Question 31

why alternative?

Answer 31

belief that ct not best forum for solving family diputes so these alternative methods much better
.

Question 32

consequence of these alternatives?

Answer 32

• family law lawyers have decreased in the number you either legal aid at the bottom or high net worth, not mucn in the middle,
• ct system-legal aid has made ct process much complicated as people dotn know and ct hearings take longer people are quite emotional in ct based on topics, emotional co herent might makebad job of representing themselves, but all this is to push people into non court dispute resolutions.