Happy 2nd Birthday! Pink and Proud

Wow – Pink Tape is 2 years old. I confess I didn’t really think this far ahead when I made my first blog entry and landed on the name Pink Tape. I didn’t really think ahead at all – it seemed like a good idea at the time. But it’s been fun, and moderately successful, [...]

FAMILY LEGAL AID PLANS TORN APART IN DAMNING JUSTICE SELECT COMMITTEE REPORT

Ah, it’s just a roller coaster in this job. You never know what to expect – at court, or in your bank account. Don’t you just love it? Today the Justice Select Committee has blown a great big hole in the bow of the LSC proposals to cut our fees (I’d like to say it was [...]

Family Legal Aid – Update

On Tuesday I attended a second meeting at the House of Lords, hosted by the Parliamentary Justice Committee, this time chaired by Lord Thomas of Gresford. The meeting was convened to consider further the topic: ‘Vulnerable Children at Risk: How Will The Legal Services Commission’s Proposals Help?, which it might be thought was a rather leading [...]

Sharia Courts Criticised by Civitas

The Times reports on a recently published Civitas report which is critical of Sharia Courts and in particular the tensions between Sharia and human rights and the law in this jurisdiction. Of particular note for family lawyers or those interested in it is of course the community pressure which can bear upon muslim women, and [...]

The Fruits of Labour

Sigh….So many things I wanted to blog about this weekend and so little time…I have been alternating between watching my amazing boy walk a little bit further and a little bit further (we’re up to six steps in a row before the inevitable face plant), doing a mini ground force on my garden with some very [...]

O-VER-LOAD! [Dalek voice effect]

The Guardian reports that 7% of CAFCASS Guardian appointments in care cases are unallocated. That is 653 of a total of 9060 cases. The only surprise there is that the figure for unallocated cases is so low. You can’t get a Guardian for love nor money round these here parts, and Judges have all but [...]

Justice Committee Hearing TOMORROW!

For anyone at a loose end tomorrow, and with an interest in Family Fees… Family Fees: Justice Committee Hearing at Westminster – 16th June at 4.00 pm: The Justice Committee will hold a one-off evidence session looking at the Government’s proposals for the reform of family law legal aid and the conduct of consultation on [...]

Ancillary to NOTHING

Where there is no lawful marriage there is no divorce and where there is no divorce there is nothing for ancillary relief to be ancillary to. The BBC reports on the High Court ruling recently in respect of a distant beach marriage that did not create legal ties. Did this poor lady never hear of Jerry [...]

A Model of Neutrality

At least we can be sure that the accredited media who are now permitted access to the family courts can be relied upon to report lawfully, accurately and without bias or pathos…sorry, did I snigger when I said that? What a shocking piece of journalism / creative writing. There are self-indulgent English idyll flourishes (the reporter tells us [...]

Scary Stuff – BNP White Paper on Family Law

No doubt the BNP are hoping to capitalise on the general disillusionment with mainstream political parties in order to gain seats in the forthcoming european elections and further down the line. (I have received a rather unpleasant leaflet through the door myself, plastered with respectable white people and unpleasant slogans.) For anyone contemplating casting a [...]