
If the new Labour Lord Chancellor could make three changes to family law procedure, what should they be?
In this first part of a two-part NLJ series, family law solicitor-advocate David Burrows sets out his wishlist for change.
Burrows, a fierce critic of procedural inefficiency, regularly highlights in his NLJ columns the dire consequences of court delays on children caught up in the family justice system. Here, he pinpoints three areas for improvement and skilfully presents argument for each.
On children’s rights to make applications, Burrows recalls a 2016 case in which Lady Justice Black described the law of child representation as ‘of complexity’. Burrows writes: ‘In the company of so experienced a children lawyer, what hope has a child of knowing how to get anywhere?’