With the courts confirming there is no way to define an ‘expert’ in family proceedings, Sarah Keily stresses the need for caution until change is effected
- It is ultimately the decision of the court in each case to determine if a person is an expert.
- Practitioners should exercise caution if an unregulated expert is proposed.
- HCPC registration is the ‘kitemark’ of qualification.
- Parental alienation is not a syndrome—it is a process of alienating behaviours and fundamentally a question of fact.
The president of the Family Division, Sir Andrew McFarlane, recently gave judgment in the case of Re C (‘parental alienation’; instruction of expert) [2023] EWHC 345 (Fam), [2023] All ER (D) 69 (Feb). The judgment provides guidance to family law practitioners about the instruction of unregulated experts, in particular in cases where parental alienation is alleged.
Background
These long-running proceedings relate to the arrangements for two children, now aged 11 and 13, where contact with their father had broken down and the father alleged
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