Writing in to the judge to amend a recent order.

[DespicableWee]

Is this something that can be done by one party if both sides aren't in agreement about the changes?

This is in Family Court if that makes any difference?

There was an enforcement hearing a month ago during which the enforcement aspect was dismissed but a new access order was written by agreement with the intention of preventing further returns to court.

The other party has now changed their mind about what access they want and their solicitor has emailed me a copy of the letter they say they have sent to the judge which says they have attached an email from me on the matter.

It genuinely isn't possible to agree to the proposed ammendment for a number of reasons I outlined in that email as well as the children not wanting to go on any additional occasions.

I'm LIP, a bit out of my depth with this development and googling is not being at all helpful. What could I expect to happen? Am I expected to write to the judge putting across my 'side', will the judge write to me or would any change be based purely on the letter from ex's solicitor? What purpose has including my email in the letter served? Could any of my correspondence be forwarded to a judge at any time? If the proposed changes are added and it is not possible to keep to them, would I just write to the judge or would I have to lodge a formal appeal?

Sorry for all the questions, this is all a but out of the blue and I'm all at sea with it and can't find any guidance to help me puzzle out how I am supposed to act.

The email that I sent to the other side would have left them in no doubt that I didn't agree, it quite explicitly laid out my disagreement and the myriad reasons for it. Will that suffice or should I rephrase and resend it for the avoidance of all doubt?

For the letter to court, should that be addressed to the court in general or for the specific attention of the judge who heard the most recent hearing? The copy of the letter that I recieved from my ex's solicitor was suitably vague as to give no guidance for me to be able to follow so while I don't want to bother a specific judge if it isn't their concern, I equally don't want anything being lost by being too vague.

If you don't agree with the proposed changes, you should write to the court, putting the case number in.(you should have it from your previous letters from the court) The other party can't change anything without either your agreement or another court order. A new hearing may be necessary if there is no agreement. However, usually, there will be a section in an order that says something like " any other contact as shall be agreed by the parties" . Can you use this?
The family court has changed since 22nd April, so it is best to address the letter to the court, rather than an individual judge. As a L.I.P, the court should help explain the processes to you. Hope that helps

Thank you Babybarrister and Peezy.

I spoke to the family department at the court and to the PSU service based there, to check my letter included everything it needed to and make sure of where to send it. Both were confused by my ex writing in when there clearly isn't an agreement as they haven't heard of it done this way. The court person I spoke to said I would need to get my letter in quickly, else the order would be changed to what was requested in my ex's letter since the assumption was that his writing meant we were in agreement. If my letter wasn't received until after the order had been changed, I would have to apply for a hearing to have it changed back to what it originally was. Does that sound right?

Has there been a change in how the writing in stuff is done with the April 22nd changes and its just that the new information hasn't trickled down everywhere yet? I can't find anything which suggests that procedures have been changed and so can't help but feel that this has been a dirty trick on my ex's part which is a thoroughly unpleasant thought. I would much rather it was a procedural quirk.

I'm in no way a legal person so take everything I say with a pinch of salt but I was under the assumption (and yes I could be making an arse of myself) that you both have to be in agreement before changes are made.

Would the court just take your ex's word for it? Do you know if your ex's letter has been received yet or are they unable to tell you? For changes with no agreement I always thought some sort of hearing was issued with regards to an order because of the disagreement.

The bottom line is that you and the other party need to follow the court order. And the only way it changes is if a court orders it...which takes place at a hearing.

If the other party consider it urgent they can ask for an earlier hearing date or an ex parte hearing. If they ask for one the court will decide if it agrees this is in the best interests of the child.

However if the other party considers that the order issued is different to what was ordered to the court they can ask that it be changed according to `the slip rule' - at which point things will be checked and if appropriate an order will be amended.

It is sometimes appropriate to keep the court appraised of what is going on in a case - such as the other party unilaterally making large changes to an order - at which point an emergency hearing may be appropriate.

But don't worry - the court isn't likely to make a change to an order unless it has good reason to do so - and the other party asking for the judge to effectively make an order on the basis of a letter concerning a change of contact is unlikely to go anywhere.

The changes on the 22nd are unlikely to effect this. Court orders have changed in format, residence has been abolished and existing orders have been converted to the new Child Arrangements Orders, etc. but that's about it.