Addressing an International Academy of Family Lawyers webinar last week, Mr Justice MacDonald said: ‘Judges now find the difficult and sometimes horrific cases they deal with are brought directly into their homes, comprehensively destroying the vital boundary between the professional and the personal.
‘This breach of the border between home and the court has also been a difficulty for parties and for children. The Nuffield Family Justice Observatory report [published this month] cited victims of domestic violence feeling distressed by hearings effectively taking place in their homes.’
Other problems have included lack of access by many families to adequate technology and the loss of sensitivity and empathy in remote hearings.
However, MacDonald J concluded the remote family court ‘has been, on balance, a success’.
