09 February 2023
The first Family Procedure Rules 2010 (FPR 2010) Practice Direction update of 2023 has been issued, amending various practice directions including, inter alia, amendments to reflect changes introduced by the Family Procedure (Amendment) Rules 2023, SI 2023/61, and also to make provision for parts of the Domestic Abuse Act 2021. The amendments come into force on 18 February 2023 and 6 April 2023.
Lexis®Library update: The following amendments to FPR 2010, SI 2010/2955, come into force on 18 February 2023:
- FPR 2010, PD 6C, which makes provision about orders or requests for disclosure of information by government departments when the court is seeking to obtain address details for a party or a child, is replaced by a new FPR 2010, PD 6C with up-to-date addresses for the Department for Work and Pensions and HM Revenue and Customs
- FPR 2010, PD 36ZA, which underpins a pilot scheme in North Yorkshire for early email notification by the court to the police of non-molestation orders and occupation orders with powers of arrest attached, is extended for a further year, to the end of February 2024
- FPR 2010, PD 36ZC (which underpins HM Courts and Tribunals Service’s online service for divorce and civil partnership dissolution applications) and FPR 2010, PD 41B (which underpins HMCTS’s online service for consent financial remedy applications) are amended to reflect the operational reality as to how a legal representative’s consent is given to be served with documents and orders relating to the proceedings via the HMCTS online service
- various practice directions, as set out in Annex 3 to the PD Update No 1 of 2023, are amended to reflect the accession of King Charles III
The following amendments to FPR 2010, SI 2010/2955, come into force on 6 April 2023:
- FPR 2010, PD 5A is amended in light of the new rule in FPR 2010, SI 2010/2955, r 33.3 regarding financial information being provided before a hearing on an enforcement application, making clear that Form E1 should be used to provide this information (see Family Procedure (Amendment) Rules 2023, SI 2023/61, r 17)
- FPR 2010, PD 12G and FPR 2010, PD 14E, which make provision as to when it would not be contempt of court to disclose information from certain family proceedings, are amended so that it would not be contempt for a party to disclose such information to an independent domestic violence adviser (IDVA) or independent sexual violence adviser (ISVA)
- a new FPR 2010, PD 27C is added, which makes provision about the attendance of IDVAs and ISVAs at hearings in family proceedings, cross-references to the new FPR 2010, PD 27C are added to the existing FPR 2010, PD 3AA, FPR 2010, PD 12B, FPR 2010, PD 12B and FPR 2010, PD 12J
- FPR 2010, PD 30A is amended in light of the amendment to FPR 2010, SI 2010/2955, r 30.3 relating to permission to appeal (see Family Procedure (Amendment) Rules 2023, SI 2023/61, r 14)
Source: Family Procedure Rules: Practice Direction Update No.1 of 2023
This content was first published by LNB News / Lexis®Library, a LexisNexis® company, on 8 February 2023 and is published with permission. Further information can be found at: www.lexisnexis.co.uk.
