Civil way: 3 June 2011

Bolt upright, please

The Family Advocacy Scheme was cursed into force on 9 May 2011, applying to cases in which the funding application was made on or after that date. Advocates will need to know their bolt-on entitlements better than their Red Book if frayed shirt collars are to be avoided.

There’s a 25% bolt-on to the hearing fee where the client (not another party) is facing allegations of significant harm to a child. In public law, the allegations must have been made by the local authority and in both public and private law, still be live. Significant harm is defined. Death is generously included as are burns and scalds and fabricated illness. Representation of a person who has difficulty giving instructions or understanding advice will also rank for a 25% bolt-on in public law children cases but only if (inter alia) verified by a report from a psychologist or psychiatrist (and not based simply on a punch-up with counsel