Family Reports
What happens after my interview?
When a Family Report is directed to be undertaken, a registrar or judge will specify a date that the matter will return to court for a Final Hearing. The appointed Family Consultant will be ordered to provide their report to the Court on a particular date – usually many weeks prior to the hearing date.
The Family Report may take several weeks to be written. After the Family Report is completed, the Family Consultant provides it to the ordering judge or registrar who will then formally release the report. Your lawyer (or you, if you don’t have a lawyer) will receive a copy of the report when it is released. A copy will also be given to the Independent Children’s Lawyer, if one has been appointed. The Family Consultant cannot give a copy directly to you. Once a report is released it is considered to be part of the formal evidence in your case.
The Family Report will be released prior to the Final Hearing. It is possible (and not uncommon) for matters to settle based on what is contained in the Family Report. Once the report is released, the Family Consultant cannot discuss it with you or receive any other information from you, either by phone or in writing.
You cannot show the report to other people, such as other family members or professionals, without the Court giving permission for this to happen. This is the case even for people who may have been interviewed for the report, but are not a party to the court case. It is an offence, under s121 of the Family Law Act 1975 to publish or disseminate to the public, or a section of the public, any part of proceedings that identifies a party, a witness, or certain other persons.
It is important to note that the Family Report is only one source of evidence that the Court considers in making its decision. The Court is not bound by any recommendations made in the report. If you wish to challenge the contents of the Family Report, then the appropriate way to do this is through cross examination in Court. For this to occur, the Family Consultant must be called as a witness and given at least 14 days’ notice in writing. You (or your lawyer, if you have one) should write to the Family Consultant at the address shown on your court correspondence. In cross-examination, you (or your lawyer), the other party (or their lawyer), the Independent Children’s Lawyer (if one is appointed) and the judicial officer may ask the Family Consultant questions about the contents of the report and their assessment of your family.