Making the most of your courtroom experience

Making the most of your courtroom experience

Heading to court can be extremely stressful – after all, the outcomes that you’ve been fighting for will be finally decided by the judge. We speak to a family law solicitor to find out, from his perspective how social workers can make practical changes to improve their courtroom skills.

What are the family courts trying to achieve?

The best interest of the child or children is paramount and it’s the main consideration of the court when reaching their decision. Parents may not necessarily agree with the plan that has been set out by the social workers, so it’s up to the social worker to justify their decision and provide evidence to the court that their plan is the right one. The court will listen to every side and will take a balanced view of the best interest of the child.

Going to court can be distressing for families, whether it’s the result of a family breakdown or a child protection issue. How do you think the courts can make the process easier for families to understand what is happening?

We know that in general, most people have never seen the inside of a courtroom so it can be extremely daunting. There are some things that social workers can do to help work with families to make the process easier for families.

For instance, within magistrates’ courts, there are posters which show the layout of where everyone sits but these are often tucked away. I felt it would be beneficial if something like this was provided to all families when they are given notice of proceedings. It starts to help them understand what to expect. If someone has a solicitor, then they should be advised on this, but more people are going to court without representation so it's important that we help to set expectations.

From a child’s perspective, luckily, it’s extremely rare that a child is asked to come to court. It’s the role of the Cafcass representative to ensure that their voice is heard, but if a child is asked to come (perhaps they are older) it should be explained to them in detail beforehand so that they do not feel overwhelmed.

There have been some cases when a child has had to provide evidence, but the courts continually put their welfare first. They will work around the child to make the process as easy as possible – this may be through pre-recording interviews outside of the courtroom and preventing any cross-examination. In some cases, video interviews may even be transcribed to protect the child.

During cross-examinations, social workers may feel that their professional judgement is being undermined. What advice would you give to a practitioner to help them keep their confidence and push for the most appropriate outcome?

It’s all about preparation. If the social worker has come to the courtroom having done everything that they should have, then they’ll be fine. But unfortunately, I’ve come across instances where they’ve said that they’ll do something, but they haven’t – often due to time restrictions. It may be something as simple as saying that they’ll chase up a referral or passing on information to a parent. If it hasn’t been done, then it’s easy for me as a solicitor to jump onto this as part of my cross-examination.

From my perspective, everything is about sticking to their recommendations and being confident with it. Social workers will have spent hours establishing a plan of action and it’s clearly what they think is to achieve the best possible outcome, so they need to have confidence with it. They need to stick up for their plan in the face of questioning.

I would also recommend that social workers give credit to parents where its due. There can be a tendency to brush off any efforts made by parents because it’s felt that it weakens their case. But I disagree. I think if a family has been making a significant effort to make changes then it should be recognised by the court. It may not necessarily be enough to keep them together but to me, it shows a much more balanced case. It strengthens your evidence and shows that you’ve considered every possible aspect and still drawn the same conclusion. That’s what the courts should be looking for.

In care proceedings, the social worker’s role is often to be a professional witness. How can they ensure that their evidence is appropriate?

Social workers will have their framework which will set out what their evidence should look like, and as with everything it’s all about preparation and making the correct enquiries.

Obviously, the number one outcome is to alwayskeep children with their parents. Social workers needto provide evidence which shows that they’ve done everything they can to improve the situation and keep them together. They need to document what they’ve done to assist the situation and show how they’ve helped. If they’ve done all their preparation, they can feel confident about their evidence.

What advice would you give to someone to help them present their evidence effectively?

Once a social worker has presented their written evidence to the court, they need to make sure that their verbal evidence matches this. They’ll be able to refer to their written evidence in front of them, but everything is about being honest, truthful and having convictions in their recommendations.

A practical tip is to always address any answers directly to the judge. I may be asking the questions, but it’s the judge who is listening. Those who turn to face the judge and maintain eye contact show a greater level of confidence.