New guidance on child witnesses

The Family Justice Council (FJC) has published new guidelines on children giving live evidence in family proceedings.

An FJC working party, chaired by Lord Justice Thorpe, was set up after a referral to the Supreme Court from the Court of Appeal in the case of Re W (children) (abuse: oral evidence) [2010] EWCA Civ 57, which considered the issue of children’s evidence. In March 2010, the Supreme Court removed the presumption that only in exceptional cases should a child be called to give live evidence in family proceedings (Re W [2010] UKSC 12).

The working party says its research suggests the number of applications for children to give evidence may be increasing since the ruling.
 

Its guidelines provide points to be taken into consideration by the court when deciding whether a child should be asked to give live evidence, and a list of “dos and don’ts” for lawyers questioning children.
 

It emphasises that the court should “consider seriously” alternatives to the child appearing at a hearing, and points out that hearsay evidence is admissible in family proceedings.
 

The guidelines advise that all advocates have a responsibility to manage the questioning of a child witness fairly, but that ultimate responsibility rests with the court.