The Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration, Jim O’Callaghan today, 21 August, welcomes the launch of tenders for two initiatives under the government’s Family Justice Strategy 2022-2025.
The initiatives are the Children's Court Advocate Pilot and the Family Law Reporting Project.
Minister O’Callaghan said:
I am extremely pleased to announce that my Department is currently tendering
for two hugely significant initiatives under the Family Justice Strategy.“The Children’s Court Advocate Pilot Project is an innovative new service which aims to ensure children are supported with clear, accessible information about the legal process, and provided with meaningful opportunities to express their views about decisions that impact them. There is a constitutional requirement to hear the views of children in certain family law proceedings and I am determined to ensure that every child in such proceedings has the opportunity to realise that right.
“The Family Law Reporting Project aims to increase public awareness and understanding of family law proceedings. There is no comprehensive system in Ireland for regularly and systematically reporting on private family law proceedings. The Project aims to provide transparency for the public while ensuring the right to privacy is upheld for children and parents. It will serve to increase awareness and understanding of family law proceedings, while building confidence and trust in the judicial determination of family law disputes.
“Both projects will make a significant contribution to ongoing improvements of our family justice system and will help to promote greater transparency and ensure that children are heard and supported in proceedings. Our aim is to create a family justice system that promotes a more efficient, less adversarial approach, greater use of mediation where appropriate, and access to clear, comprehensive and accessible information on relevant supports and services.
In the Report on Consultations with Children and Young People for the Family Justice Oversight Group in 2022, it was identified that children want more information, to be given a choice in how to have their voice heard and they also want professionals providing the support to show genuine care and interest. This development also follows the Review of the Role of Expert Reports in the Family Law Process published in 2024.
The Children’s Court Advocate pilot seeks to improve how the voice of the child is heard and considered in private family law proceedings. The aim is to ensure children can access child friendly and appropriate information about the legal process and are given meaningful opportunities to express their views in a manner appropriate to their age, development, and individual needs. The pilot reflects the objective of the Family Justice Strategy to make the reformed system more child-centred.
The pilot will initially be established in two District Court locations - Waterford City and Clonmel - and will apply to all applications made for guardianship, custody and/or access.
A review will be carried out no later than 18 months into the project and, subject to the outcome of that review and availability of funding, it is intended that phase two will expand the scope of the pilot to include incoming Circuit Court divorce and judicial separation cases. It is expected the total pilot period will be three years.
The second tender is for a Family Law Reporting Project, a commitment under goal six of the Family Justice Strategy. The overall aim of the Project is to enhance transparency both for the public about family law proceedings and confidence in the judicial determination of family law disputes, while continuing to ensure the privacy of those proceedings for children and families. The systematic reports on aspects of family law cases that the Project will produce and publish will further public understanding and awareness of, and confidence in, the judicial determination of family law disputes.
Information about both tenders has been posted on the eTenders website
The closing date for submissions for both tenders is 15 September 2025.
No comments:
Post a Comment