When you represent yourself in a contested family case, in other words without a lawyer, you are called a ‘litigant in person’ (LIP). It’s an extremely daunting experience and the best way to cope is to understand the process, read up about the issues, get good advice and guidance and be organised so as to make sure you do what’s necessary. For the professionals involved it’s their jobs. For you it’s your life and much more stressful. The better prepared you are the less likely you are to be overwhelmed.
Family Court
The resources CAFCASS use to assess harmful conflict
If your case involves ‘harmful conflict’, the links in this blog show you exactly how CAFCASS will assess you and your family relationships. FCAs are expected to follow these processes although they do have discretion in how they conduct their assessments.
Domestic abuse: How ONRECORD helps you prove it and how CAFCASS assess it
Use ONRECORD to prove domestic abuse How ONRECORD helps you gather evidence proving domestic abuse and how to understand CAFCASS domestic abuse assessments. Domestic abuse almost invariably occurs in private, so…
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I Can’t Afford a Lawyer! What Can I Do?
You may be thinking you can’t afford a lawyer, but that may not be true if you are able to do some of the practical work yourself. In this article, we…
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5 Real Life Situations You Need To Prove Using Evidence
Here are 5 examples are of serious problems which need proof if you’re going to deal with them successfully. They all involve the police and the courts. In every case you will need legal advice about what to do. Whether you succeed will depend on what you can prove and how good the evidence is. ONRECORD can help you make good records and improve your chances of success. Read our advice about making good records – you will need it in every case.
Giving a voice to those who are not heard
corrupt authorities, Abuse, child exploitation, child protection, coercive control, corrupt authority, decision to prosecute, divorce, domestic abuse, evidence, false allegations, Family Court, gather evidence, Grooming, historical child abuse, incompetent authorities, male victims, parental alienation, police powers, sexual abuse
The ONRECORD app, by storing good quality and detailed evidence online, which can be securely shared with professionals, provides the best opportunity for anyone to penetrate the resistance to them being heard. There are plenty of powerful figures, such as those suppressing the information about child abuse on the British mainland and the Channel Islands, who will try to silence victims. In the end, though, being able to present your evidence clearly and share it securely is the most effective way of ensuring that cover-ups are uncovered and the guilty face justice.
The Family Court: Domestic Abuse, Coercive Control, Parental Alienation and False Allegations
Join us to learn more about the family court and its treatment of victims and perpetrators of abuse, coercive control, parental alienation and false allegations. Subscribe to our podcast channel and get reminders to know when we next publish.
The CAFCASS ‘Tool’ for Assessing Coercive Control
Coercive behaviour is defined as “an act or a pattern of acts of assault, threats, humiliation and intimidation or other abuse that is used to harm, punish, or frighten their victim. Coercive control involves repeated, ongoing, intentional tactics which are used to limit the liberty of the victim.
How to represent yourself in the family court
When you represent yourself in a contested family case, in other words without a lawyer, you are a ‘litigant in person’ (LIP). It’s a daunting experience and the best way to cope is to understand what’s going to happen, who is going to do what, what issues are going to be seen as important and what will not be seen as important, get good advice and be organised and make sure you do what’s necessary.
CAFCASS Assessments: Parental mental illness, Sexual abuse, Parental drug or alcohol abuse, Neglect, Child exploitation
See all the ‘tools’ used by CAFCASS to assess these parenting problems