About the Family Court
What is the Family Court
The Family Court is a part of the Royal Court, known as the Family Division.
Family Court
Before the Family Registrars
There are two Registrars (Judges) and three Family Proceedings Officers.
The lower family court deals with private family issues such as:
- Divorce applications (and the children and money issues that can happen when couples divorce)
- Civil partnership dissolution applications (and the children and money problems that can happen when couples end their partnership)
- Children applications (such as where a child lives, and what contact they have, money issues, a wishing to move with the child(ren) to another country) and parental responsibility
- Adoption applications
- Reciprocal enforcement of maintenance orders
The Royal Court
Before the Bailiff, Deputy Bailiff, Commissioners and Jurats. The higher court hears cases such as:
- Public law cases involving families and the Children’s Service
- Domestic violence injunctions
- Private law cases that have been referred up to the higher court by a Registrar
- Very urgent (or ex parte) applications (ex parte means that an application is made without the other party being informed)