Category Archives: reviews

Book Review: “Child Care and Protection: Law and Practice”

This is a review of “Child Care and Protection: Law and Practice” by Safda Mahmood and Julie Doughty (7th edn, 2024, Wildy, Simmonds & Hill) by Dominik Morton, Barrister at St John’s Chambers.

 

Dominik MortonA little bit about me first of all. I am a barrister at St John’s Chambers in Bristol. I was called to the Bar in 2018. Since that date, I have had a private and public child law practice and have dealt with a variety of different cases. Therefore, offering to review this book made sense and provided me with a helpful reminder of legal topics, old and new, with accompanying analysis and law.

What should be noted from the get-go is that this book has been written by two very experienced authors. Both authors have written extensively on a variety of topics and issues relevant to this book. Perhaps more importantly however is the fact that both authors have been practitioners for a considerable amount of time. Therefore, the breadth of legal topics covered within this book, along with their application and use within practice is striking and very impressive. It was pleasing to note that this book has been written with practitioners in mind and has a particular focus on public and private child law.

The book itself does not cover every single topic that has or might crop up in family cases. However, in fairness to the authors, it would be extremely difficult to cover everything in sufficient detail and for it to remain concise and digestible in order for practitioners to use whilst working from home, in chambers or firms, or at court.

Book Cover image

What the book does do is capture all of the key areas and strands of child protection in order for practitioners to refer to. More importantly, it has covered a huge number of legal changes since the author’s last publication back in 2019, with specific references and analysis on updating legislative provisions, regulations, practice guidance, and case law.

Each chapter of the book deals with a different topic but all chapters seem to be interlinked in some way, thus making it smooth and logical to follow. What is very helpful to a practitioner is that each chapter has a break-down of the issues that one must bear in mind and makes specific reference to legislation, regulations, practice guidance, and case law (old and new) on each point. This makes the job a lot easier, especially when one is aware of a specific provision or judgment on a particular point, but one cannot recall the title or name of that provision or judgment. Having all of these key provisions and judgments, along with specific references and paragraph numbers, in one place and easily accessible is ideal and makes it very handy especially when one is out and about.

The authors have also provided references to additional case law, practice guidance, and even legal research for those who have a bit more time to prepare and conduct their own independent research. These references are provided but not expanded upon in detail, which means that the book remains concise and to the point, whilst being as comprehensive as possible.

What is also lovely to see within this book is that the authors have provided some helpful critical analysis on more recent topics and issues, with specific reference to provisions and case law to back up what is being said. Two examples of this are (1) funding implications on experts following the 2022 Legal Aid Agency guidance, and (2) deprivation of liberty cases and the ongoing difficulties particularly with regard to available placements. There is also consideration of topics that are still being grappled with to this day. One example being the issue of transparency within the family court and how this is changing and is likely to change in the future.

The use of flow-charts, list of abbreviations, and glossary of key terms is very much welcomed and is a helpful reminder to all practitioners of procedure and terminology used in and out of court which can get a little convoluted and difficult to follow at times.

Given that this book is aimed at practitioners, I was of course expecting to see some application of the law in practice. What I didn’t expect to see is that each chapter has a section dedicated solely to “Practice and Procedure”. On top of that, there is a specific chapter (chapter 11) which deals with “Instructions and Case Preparation in Family Proceedings”.

The whole of chapter 11, along with the specific sections within each chapter devoted to practice and procedure allow practitioners who have been in the game for some time to reflect on how they approach cases. For new practitioners who are feeling overwhelmed and dauted by the idea of being in a family court, the focused sections within each chapter on practice and procedure, and chapter 11 in its entirety, provide a helpful nudge in the right direction and provide a brilliant foundation to what will hopefully become a successful practice.

Overall, it is probably safe to assume from the review thus far that I am very impressed with this book and will certainly be using it in my day-to-day practice moving forward.

The only point which I would like to make by way of constructive criticism is that there are sections within this book which are, at times, difficult to read and follow. This is not a consistent issue that runs throughout the book, but rather crops up every now and then by way of wordy and dense paragraphs. This does make certain sections of certain chapters not as digestible as the authors may have hoped for and might cause some practitioners who are frantically trying to find a specific reference to miss key and relevant information.

Everything else is spot on with this book. Clearly, the authors have done a lot of hard work to tie everything together within this edition. All practitioners have to do is read it, apply it, and reap the benefits. I therefore would definitely recommend this book to other practitioners.

 

This book is available to purchase here for £45.

Podcasts

Lately, I’ve been listening to podcasts in the shower. I don’t like headphones and I don’t have a daily commute to speak of so when else am I going to listen to them, right? Plus, Radio 4 has become almost unbearable and I have to listen to something to wake myself up.

Due to a combination of poor acoustics and ventilation I listen to said podcasts with the tiny top window wide open and the bluetooth radio on full volume. My husband has only recently thought to tell me that when I do this I broadcast every word of my chosen podcast from the second floor across all the gardens in the neighbourhood.

I like to think therefore that the standards of public legal education in my part of North Somerset are particularly high. Saying that, I did try and listen to one such podcast whilst gardening recently, and every time I switched it on the neighbour remembered something else he’d forgotten to strim. So, perhaps not.

Anyway, what delights have I been forcing my neighbours to endure?

Well, first it was the Hidden Homicides podcast. And then a bit of the Post Office Trial podcast series (though I got a bit waylaid during that and lost track).

And more recently I’ve been listening to Malvika Jaganmohan and Maddie Whelan’s Professionally Embarassing podcast series, the first 10 episode series of which has just concluded. I’ve also belatedly spotted Melanie Bataillard-Samuel’s podcast Family Law & Lattes. I’ve only listened to the first episode which was a sort of strangely both reassuring and alarming run down by someone far wiser than I of the post-Brexit landscape in terms of jurisdiction for family matters.

But I really wanted to talk a little about Malvika’s and Maddie’s podcast, because actually I think its really rather great, and I’m a tiny bit jealous I haven’t got off my arse and done something like it myself, and I just think they deserve a big pat on the back. I’ve been talking about making a podcast for a long time, but it just seems like such a huge effort – and now M&M have done one I think they’ve cornered the market. It’s a really great mix of analysis and personal reflection, of law and of practice – and importantly the personality and thoughtfulness of these two engaging, sparky young women really shines through. They care about what they do. They remind me of a much younger me. All enthusiasm and hope and principle. *Sighs wistfully*.

Anyway, far from being professionally embarrassing, I think the podcasts are a great advert for the family bar, and for M&M – they are not afraid to tackle tricky topics, and to give praise and criticism alike where it is due, and they show some great insight into the flaws in the system, the experiences and challenges facing clients as well as other professionals. They are also acting as excellent role models on topical professional issues such as diversity and wellbeing.

I am looking forward to series two – and although their format is pretty much spot on as it is, I am wondering if they will have some guests the second time around. I hope they do – I don’t mean some stuffy Q&A interview format, but I think that there might be some great opportunities for multi-directional learning if they set up some exchanges with some more senior members of the profession – to give just one tiny example (which is not a criticism) it was great to see them showcasing the Resolutions Model in episode 10, in light of a recent case on the topic – but I was shouting from behind my shower screen that Resolutions isn’t actually new at all. It’s been around for years, and when it works it works brilliantly. But in fact, it has almost died out because practically nobody does it any more – the co-founder of it was a chap called Colin Luger from the Bristol area, and he passed a few years ago and since then I’ve struggled to find any expert doing this work. For me the judgment was useful in giving me a name of someone who now does use the model – but I anticipate she will be over capacity as a result! I think the mix of experience and fresh perspective that a junior and a senior practitioner could bring could make this even better. Anyway, that’s my interfering old aunt suggestion, and with that I’m going to butt out.

You can find all these podcasts on Spotify, and I’m sure elsewhere too. That’s just the app I use.

I’ve also discovered other podcasts and put them on my list to listen to during showers yet to come : The justice Gap Podcast and the WiFL – Women in Family Law Podcast.

What I doubt I’ll be doing any time soon is making my own podcast. I would probably have one listener, and that would be my dad. And although M&M’s podcast is pretty slick, I know from bitter experience it will take many more hours to prepare and polish than it takes me to listen. If I wanted to make time for a podcast of my own I’d have to give up several showers a week, and let’s be honest, I don’t think anyone would want that. Pongcast, by Lucy Reed…

Dictionary of Private Children Law

Class Legal have recently published a Dictionary of Private Children Law, co-authored by HHJ Edward Hess, Zoe Saunders, Piers Pressdee QC and Dr Rob George. The Dictionary is a sister to the Dictionary of Financial Remedies, also headed up by HHJ Hess.

The Dictionary comes in traditional Class Legal slimline A4 format, and the back cover tells me it is aimed at judges and practitioners,  but also that it is ‘a book sufficiently accessible for litigants acting without lawyers’.

I found it an intriguing mix of the very basic and the quite niche – some aspects will be redundant for experienced practitioners, whilst others will probably be beyond litigants in person. Writing for such a diverse audience is an almost impossible challenge. That said, there is basically something for everyone in it – it is a dictionary after all, and like any dictionary it doesn’t matter if you already know some of the terms, or if you never need to check on others – that’s the beauty of a dictionary I suppose! You go to the bit you need when the moment arises – and it’s there succinctly defined for you. Having read through it in a slightly artificial alphabetical way, its clear that some pretty tricky topics are quite neatly condensed with useful practical explanations – it looks simple when you just see the end product, but I know that this sort of writing requires both time and skill to do well – and these are done well. There are a few entries which read much more like a textbook with no more than the bare bones of the law rehearsed, without any indication of how they might be deployed in practice (largely those sections in what I think of as the ‘dead zone’ in the Children Act i.e. the alphabetised elevenses (S11A-O) and and s16, which rarely lift off the page in real life for reasons of resource and policy / politics – which is perhaps why they aren’t brought to life in this dictionary either).

I think this book is likely to be of most use for lawyers (including judges) starting out in a new and unfamiliar field – whether that is junior lawyers starting out on a career, established lawyers transferring over from crime, or newly appointed judges from a civil background having to get to grips with a whole new world of family law. But it also holds utility for the more established within the field. There are definitely one or two entries I have made a mental note to use as a panic button next time a particular issue crops up leaving me needing a quick refresher or signpost. I thought the entries on the media and publicity / privacy were examples of entries likely to be particularly useful for busy lawyers or judges who suddenly found themselves in a case where a journalist has attended, and who need a quick reminder of the rules (as someone with a particular interest in this area I thought it was a shame these entries don’t refer to all the relevant and helpful guidance, but I suspect that may be an unfair expectation for such a tightly condensed publication, where references seem predominantly to be to statute, caselaw, rules and PDs only throughout, no doubt for reasons of space).

I do wonder how accessible the language of some entries would really be to litigants in person – some assume a prior knowledge of latin (such as inter partes) or technical legal terms that a litigant in person would be unlikely to grasp, and it feels rather more as if the LiP market is more incidental – rather than this being a product designed for them. Of course, I would say that, wouldn’t I, having written a book that is designed for LiPs! In fact, I think that this book would probably be quite useful adjunct to my book The Family Court without a Lawyer – although at £65 the pricing is more in the order of practitioner pricing than LiP pricing.

My only other gripe is that as an old crone I found the font size in the print copy almost impossibly small and I really had to squint to read it, which always makes me mildly irascible. Coupled with a column layout that sometimes had me muddling as to which bit of text belonged to which entry, I think the layout of the print copy doesn’t entirely do the content justice. I haven’t seen the electronic version, but I’m confident that these minor issues will be much reduced or eradicated in that format, which these days is very much my preference over print anyway. For me, the idea of a print copy of anything that I can slip in my ‘briefcase’ (as the foreword charmingly suggests I might) is rather quaint and unreal. I’d take an e-copy any day of the week thank you very much, to save my frozen shoulder. There is quite a lot of information about the e-reader format on the Class Legal website, which looks as if it has a good range of functionality (keyword search, annotation etc), even if it does require one to run a different app / browser alongside your normal pdf reader.

You can buy this very useful book at the Class Legal website here.

UPDATE : e-book.

Class legal, having seen my review, helpfully made a copy of the e-book available to me. It can be downloaded and viewed through a proprietary app. I have downloaded and had a play around with the e-book and it definitely is an improvement on the print copy for me – much more readable and of course I can cut and paste. My personal preference would be a pdf version of the book, so that I can have it open in a tab in my pdf reader with my bundles and other case specific materials, rather than having to switch between apps – particularly when working remotely reducing the number of windows and running applications on one device is important to me – which is why, when the publishers of the Family Court Practice decided to format their e-book in some whizzy format a couple of years ago I threw my toys out of the pram! They have gone back to pdf, albeit an eye-wateringly expensive pdf.

The app itself is reasonably easy to use once you have got it downloaded (do read the instructions – I didn’t and I think that accounts for much of my initial confusion). It does lack a ‘back’ button, which is a surprising omission, but I sent some feedback to Class Legal about this and other minor glitches – and they have responded positively to that feedback, telling me that they are working on this with their developer. Given the size of the book this is not a major issue, but it is a bit irritating to have to ‘start again’ at the main menu all the time. There is the facility to make notes (electronic post its) on the book – but I have found that the note function is a bit glitchy. Again, Class are looking at this – as best I can tell it works if you open the app up from the app icon, but not if you access it via a browser. Realistically however, I doubt that for a book of this sort, the note taking function is going to be critical.

So, for me, I’d recommend the e-book in spite of the above. It’s a useful resource that I’d prefer to have on my laptop than in hard copy – and for the reasonable price of £65 (for either hard copy or digital) I can live without a back button. For a publication like the red book that is ten times more expensive and a hundred times more voluminous this sort of limitation on navigation and searchability might be a deal breaker, but here this is no more than a mild irk, and hopefully one that the nice people at Class will sort soon anyway.