Something for the Weekend: Cream - SWLABR

I confess I didn't know of him, but I certainly knew of his work. Last Sunday artist Martin Sharp passed away. Amongst other things, he created the cover art for Cream's album Disraeli Gears. I can still remember when my older sister brought the album home - its art and its sound were disturbingly yet excitingly different from almost anything I had previously experienced. This video shows off the artwork and one of my favourite tracks from the album:

Teacher knows best

Teach married couples about monogamy for sake of the children, says High Court judge - The Telegraph, 5th December 2013.

What I've been writing about this week on the Marilyn Stowe Blog

My posts on the Marilyn Stowe Blog from the last seven days:

What family lawyers were talking about this week - A review of last week's top family law news stories.

Review of the year, Part 1 - You guessed it - the first part of my review of the family law year.

RGB v Cwm Taf Health Board: another day in the Court of Protection - Looking at the Court of Protection case RGB v Cwm Taf Health Board & Others.

Review of the year, Part 2 - Yep, the second part of my review of the family law year.

Another difficult decision for the family court - Should a woman be allowed to keep her dead husband's sperm?

Marilyn Stowe is the founder and senior partner at Stowe Family Law and is also the founder of Stowe Family Law Settlements, a specialist ADR practice. 

Supreme Court judgment in In the matter of KL (A Child)

Supreme Court hands down judgment in In the Matter of KL (A Child)

Image: UK Supreme Court

The Supreme Court has today handed down judgment in In the Matter of KL (A Child).

The Issue
The correct approach to be taken to the situation where a child is removed from his/her country of residence pursuant to a return order under the Hague Convention, which order is made erroneously and overturned on appeal. Whether, in those circumstances, the parent from the care of whom the child was removed has a remedy to recover the child.

The Facts
The Father is a male US national of Ghanaian origin, the Mother a female Ghanaian national currently based in the UK. The Father and the Mother married in Texas in December 2005, where their child K was born in August 2006. The Father and the Mother lived together in Texas until their divorce in 2008. In July 2008 the mother and child went to England where they remained until February 2010. In 2010, the Father was granted custody of K and the right to designate his place of residence by the Texas courts. In 2011, however, the Mother instituted abduction proceedings in the Texas Federal Court on the basis that K was being wrongly retained in Texas by the Father. She obtained an order requiring K and his passport immediately to be delivered to her. The Father complied with the order, and K and the Mother travelled to England in August 2011. The Father then appealed against the order, which was overturned in July 2012. The Mother appealed this, but her appeal was rejected: On the 29th August the Texan court made an order requiring the Mother to return K to the Father. She remains in breach of that order. The Father issued an application for the return of K in the UK under the Hague Convention on 9 August 2012 and then a further application in September 2012. The High Court and Court of Appeal have rejected the Father’s claim.

The Decision
The Supreme Court unanimously allowed the father's appeal and ordered the return of K to the United States under the inherent jurisdiction, on the basis of undertakings offered by the father to enable the mother to live in Texas, independently of the father and sharing the care of K between them, pending any application she might make to the Texas court to modify the order relating to K’s residence. Handing down the judgment, Lady Hale said that the crucial factor was that K was a Texan child who is currently being denied a proper opportunity to develop a relationship with his father and with his country of birth. Despite the passage of time there was no reason to consider that K would suffer any significant harm by returning to Texas.

You can read a press summary of the judgment here, the full judgment here (PDF - HTML version here) and the Court of Appeal judgment here.

Family Lore Clinic: What wording is used for a clean break in a mutual consent order?

As usual, the term 'consent order' is taken to mean the court order setting out an agreed financial/property settlement on divorce.

A 'clean break' basically says that the financial settlement agreed by the parties is intended to be final. Accordingly, it must make sure that neither party can make any further financial/property claims against the other. The wording of the 'clean break' clause in a consent order therefore simply dismisses all financial/property claims by either party against the other (those claims must be made prior to the consent order) and states that neither party shall be entitled to make any further claim in relation to the marriage, including any claim against the estate of the other party.

The exact wording of the clause may vary from case to case, for example where the clean break is conditional upon something else happening first, such as the sale of the former matrimonial home.

Obviously, drafting any court order is not a trivial matter and the advice of a specialist family lawyer should always be sought.

News Update: 3rd of December 2013

WELCOME to this week's Family Lore News Update.

NEWS
Domestic violence services 'at breaking point'
Services to help female victims of domestic violence are at "breaking point" because of "shocking gaps" in funding, Women's Aid has warned. Full story: BBC News.

Child protection system is 'beyond breaking point'
The child protection system is "beyond breaking point" and social workers are facing increasing pressure, a report by MPs said. Full story: ITV News.

Doncaster review team to assess future of Birmingham’s troubled children’s services
The government has ended speculation about the immediate future of Birmingham council’s children’s services, announcing a review of the troubled department. Full story: Community Care.

Safeguarding board defends Hamzah Khan review
Bradford Safeguarding Children Board has defended its serious case review into the death of four-year-old Hamzah Khan. Full story: Community Care.

Expert witness fee cut could 'hinder' family court judges
Children’s lawyers and social work bodies have raised concerns that it will be harder to find expert witnesses to give evidence in care cases due to a cut in fees paid to them through the legal aid system. Full story: Children & Young People Now.

Autumn Statement 2013: Married couples 'no better off' after tax break
The Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales is raising doubts about the effectiveness of David Cameron's £700 million plan to cut taxes for married couples. Full story: The Telegraph.

Beneficiaries of offshore trusts ordered to disclose documents
In Tchenguiz-Imerman v Imerman [2013] EWHC 3627 (Fam) Mr Justice Moylan has given a judgment explaining his order in financial remedy proceedings for disclosure by beneficiaries of offshore discretionary trusts who had been joined as parties. Full story: Family Law Week.

Judge Sir Paul Coleridge quit because of lack of ‘support’ over marriage stance
Sir Paul Coleridge, the High Court judge who set up the Marriage Foundation, discloses he decided to step down from the bench because of opposition to his stance on marriage. Full story: The Telegraph.

Holman J calls for maintenance enforcement rules to be simplified
In Constantinides v Constantinides [2013] EWHC 3688 (Fam) [below], Mr Justice Holman has said that the law concerning enforcement of maintenance by imprisonment are 'in dire need of modernisation, simplification and reform'. Full story: Family Law Week.

Research shows how children’s guardians are fulfilling their role
New research by the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service, The Work of Cafcass Guardians in Care Cases, sheds light on how children's guardians fulfil their role of being the 'voice of the child' in care proceedings. Full story: Family Law Week.

Family 'foster carers' losing out, says watchdog
People who look after young relatives or friends' children are being treated unfairly by some councils, a local government watchdog says. Full story: BBC News.

Numbers on Welsh child protection registers increase slightly
There were 2,950 children (including unborn children) on local authority child protection registers in Wales at 31 March 2013. Full story: Family Law Week.

Supreme Court to hand down judgment in Hague Convention appeal on 4th December
The Supreme Court will hand down judgment in Re KL (A Child) on Wednesday, 4th December. Full story: Family Law Week.

New figures show smaller rise in adoptions
The rise in the number of children adopted last year was not as high as previously thought, new data analysis suggests. Full story: Children & Young People Now.

Police receive new orders to tackle domestic abuse
Tough powers to tackle domestic violence are to be introduced across England and Wales, Home Secretary Theresa May has announced. Full story: Children & Young People Now.

ECtHR rules on duty to carry out ‘in-depth examination’ in Hague Convention child abduction cases
The European Court of Human Rights has delivered a Grand Chamber judgment in the case of X v Latvia [below] in which reunite International Child Abduction Centre intervened. Full story: Family Law Week.

Mediation – the best option for children
Children can be spared the trauma of stressful court battles if their parents use mediation Family Justice Minister Lord McNally said today. Full story: Ministry of Justice.

CASES
LJ v JD [2013] EWHC 3632 (Fam) (20 May 2013)
Committal application for breach of domestic violence undertaking. Full report: Bailii.

Shagroon v Sharbatly [2013] EWHC 3756 (Fam)
Judgment in proceedings to enforce undertakings given in the course of proceedings under Part III of the Matrimonial and Family Proceedings Act 1984. Full report: Family Law Week.

X v Latvia (Application no. 27853/09) (26 November 2013)
Referral to Grand Chamber of decision that Latvian courts had breached mother's Article 8 rights when ordering return of child to Australia. Held that there had been a violation of Article 8, the Latvian court having failed to carry out an effective examination of the mother's allegations under Article 13 (b). Full report: ECHR. See also the news story, above.

Constantinides v Constantinides [2013] EWHC 3688 (Fam) (06 November 2013)
Appeal by husband against committal for non-payment of maintenance order. Appeal allowed. Full report: Bailii. See also the news story, above.

ARTICLES
Appeal against Refusal of a Consent Order
Can a consent order applicant (or indeed one or both parties) appeal against a district judge's refusal to seal a consent order? Asks David Burrows in this article on Family Law.

Financial Agreements: a ‘Concluded Agreement’ Test?
David Burrows looks at autonomy after Radmacher. Full article: Family Law.

Young v Young - An Analysis of the Judgment
Thomas Dudley, barrister, of 1 Garden Court Chambers provides a detailed guide to 'as complicated a financial remedies case as has been dealt with by the courts'. Full article: Family Law Week.

Legal adventures in New Zealand: litigation lessons from the Kiwis
Byron James, barrister, 14 Grays Inn Square recounts some of his experiences of the New Zealand legal system. Full article: Family Law Week.

Samantha Bangham’s Week in Cases 29 November 2013
Samantha Bangham looks at the week's case highlights. Full article: Family Law.

BLOG POSTS
Never let the facts get in the way of a good story eh?
Lucy Reed looks behind the headlines that suggest a woman was forced to have a caesarean so that social services could put her child into care. Full post: Pink Tape.

Clare’s Law (Again)
Lucy Reed has another look at the Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme. Full post: Pink Tape.

DWP issues guidance on child maintenance

The Department for Work & Pensions has today issued two pieces of guidance relating to the new child maintenance scheme.

Firstly, there is guidance regarding how and when they will end liabilities under the 1993 and 2003 schemes. This guidance can be found here.

Secondly, there is guidance explaining how they will decide if a victim of domestic violence or abuse is exempt from the proposed Child Maintenance Service application fee. This guidance can be found here.

News Podcast: For the week to the 2nd of December 2013

This week's summary of the top family law news stories.



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(If you can't see or use either of the audio players above, try refreshing your browser. Alternatively, you can listen to the podcast here.)

Police warn public to ignore clown

Townsfolk urged to ignore clowns - BBC News, 30th November 2013.

In other news, Judge Sir Paul Coleridge quit because of lack of ‘support’ over marriage stance - The Telegraph, 29th November 2013.