Re L Hearing

[Sapphirefling]

Would be grateful if anyone could point me in the direction of some factual information about a Re L hearing with regards domestic violence and child contact arrangements - I have googled but am still confused as to the exact process. None of the assaults were ever reported, although ex does have a number of cautions for assaults against others and a police investigation ongoing regarding an assault on a child. I don't want to post too much information as ex has history of finding me online. Thanks in advance

[Collaborate]

Do you mean a finding of fact hearing?

[Sapphirefling]

Thanks Collaborate - Womans Aid referred to it as a Re L hearing - she's speaking to my solicitor next week but I understand it relates to a judge making a decision as to wheteher or not there has been DV and that can then be used in future proceedings?

[mumblechum1]

I'm sure you do mean a fact finding - the counsel I usually use still calls it a Re L hearing.

OP, the idea is that before the court can consider an application for residence or contact, it must look into the allegations of violence/abuse/whatever raised.

So one of the parties (usually the mother) will file a Scott Schedule, which is a list of those allegations which she is raising. She will already have gone into all of these allegations in a lengthy statement, so the schedule is limited to just a paragraph or so. As the judge hears the evidence, (the counsel for the mother will take her step by step through each allegation, and counsel for the father will take him through his version), the judge will write his or her finding of fact on the Scott Schedule next to each allegation.

Once everyone has finished their evidence, the Judge will retire to consider that evidence and then, referring to the S Schedule, will announce her findings of facts. So a Scott Schedule may look like this:

1. 01/01/11
   

Mother (M) claims F threw a bottle at her head in the course of argument. Child woke up, was distressed, F pulled child from M's arms and took him out in the snow in his pyjamas.

F (Father) says M was drunk, took child out of cot, was about to drop child lwhen F grabbed child. M became angry and forced F and child out of house.

FOUND The Judge makes no finding/finds that Ms version of events is true.

1. ...and then so on. Scott Schedules are supposed to be reasonably brief but can run on and on into 50 plus allegations.
   

When the finding of fact hearing is over, neither party can raise allegations which weren't found by the judge to be true. The point of a F of F hearing is to put to bed irrelevant or untrue allegations so that only those true and relevant matters are considered by the court.

Hope this helps.

[Sapphirefling]

Thanks Mumblechum - that's really helpful. All of the incidents I want looked at (there are 5) don't involve the children at all so am wondering if they would still be looked at ? Thanks again - every piece of information helps me feel more confident that I WILL get some sort of closure on all of this.