Each family has a fundamental right to bring up their child free from state and court interference, but sometimes, where disputes cannot be resolved, the court becomes involved. The role of a family judge is to independently scrutinise the evidence presented by the parties, listen to the wishes and feelings of the child, and ultimately make a decision on what is in the child’s best interests. The welfare of the child is the court’s paramount consideration. But what else does a judge do? Read on to find out.
Each family has a fundamental right to bring up their child free from state and court interference, but sometimes, where disputes cannot be resolved, the court becomes involved. The role of a family judge is to independently scrutinise the evidence presented by the parties, listen to the wishes and feelings of the child, and ultimately make a decision on what is in the child’s best interests. The welfare of the child is the court’s paramount consideration. But what else does a judge do? Read on to find out.
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What do the family courts do?
The role of the judge in the family court is to listen to both sides of the argument and make a fair decision. Family cases are handled by judges and magistrates, who cover two main types of cases: private and public matters. Private matters cover cases involving where children will live, contact arrangements, schooling, or overseas relocations. Public cases happen when local authorities step in to protect children who face harm in their parents care. These cases can lead to actions such as removing the children from their parents, supervision orders, and adoption. These will usually be dealt with in the High Court, whereas relatively simple matters, such as resolving contact and residence disputes or dealing with domestic violence, can be dealt with by magistrates.
What are the different types of judge?
The following type of judge deal with family proceedings and work from the bottom up. This means that most cases will either begin in the magistrates or county courts.
- High court judges have jurisdiction to hear all cases relating to children and exercise an exclusive jurisdiction in wardship. They also hear appeals from family proceedings, courts and cases transferred from the county court or family proceedings courts.
- Family circuit judges deal mainly with two types of work. Private cases involving parents in dispute over their children, such as who they should live with, who they should see, where they should go to school or if they can live abroad with one of their parents. The second type of work relates to public work when local authorities take action to supervise or remove children from their parents care.
- Recorders – these judges can hear both public and private law matters of the same type as family circuit judges but sit part time.
- District judges are full-time judges who deal with the majority of family cases in the county court. They preside over both private family law cases, such as divorce, finances, and child arrangement orders, and public – those dealing with the welfare of children, such as care or supervision orders.
- Deputy district judges have the same powers as a district judge and preside over the same type of case, but tend to sit on a part time basis.
- Magistrates are volunteer judicial office holders who serve in magistrates courts and are not qualified lawyers. They undergo specialist training before being allowed to sit in family proceedings, and are also assisted in court by a fully qualified legal advisor.
Whether a magistrate makes an order, or it is handed down from a High Court judge, all are legally binding, and its terms must be adhered to.
What do judges do?
The judge or magistrates will try to encourage the parties to reach an agreement, but if they are unable to do so, the judge will look into any area of dispute. The judge will also make case management decisions, such as interim orders which can usefully be made to move the case forward, and look at what directions are needed to ensure the application is ready for the next or final hearing. The judge must also take any allegations made against the other party into account and decide if they are true or false based on the balance of probabilities.
At the final hearing, the judge will consider all available evidence including evidence provided by the parties, any relevant CAFCASS reports, and any information given by the local authority. If there has been a fact finding hearing, the judge will consider any findings made during those proceedings.
Using all the evidence before it, the judge will assess and make a decision placing the welfare of the child as being of paramount importance. They will also use the evidence in conjunction with the welfare checklist to make a decision that is in the best interest of the child. The judge may decide to make no order, or may consider that a child arrangements order setting out residence and contact arrangements is required.
A judge’s core responsibilities are to:
- Read the paperwork relevant to the matter before them
- Listen to those presenting or arguing the case
- Ensure that any matter is conducted according to relevant court rules and regulations
- Advise on points of law, reach decisions on the outcome of the matter when required to do so
- Make an order or impose any other penalty or obligation on the parties involved.
Although the judge’s role largely relates to the matter being brought before them, e.g. criminal trial with a jury, application for a civil law injunction, or child arrangements order, their core role remains the same.
What is the background of judges in the UK and what qualifications do they have?
It is vital that judges reflect wider society in order to instil confidence in court users. One aspect of ensuring this is by appointing a more diverse judiciary that reflects the population. However, only 5% of judges come from minority backgrounds and only 22% are women. In addition, judicial applicants that come from a state school background are woefully under-represented. Although there has been an improvement, the numbers suggest there is a lot of work left to be done.
There are two core requirements to becoming a judge:
- Legal qualification as a barrister or solicitor, or in some cases, a chartered legal executive
- At least 5 years’ work in the legal profession
While judicial posts are open to solicitors, the vast majority of judges were previously barristers.
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