2021 No. 505 (L. 7)
Family Proceedings
Senior Courts Of England And Wales
Family Court, England And Wales

The Family Court (Composition and Distribution of Business) (Amendment) Rules 2021

Made
Laid before Parliament
Coming into force
The President of the Family Division, as nominee of the Lord Chief Justice under paragraph 2(2)(b) of Part 1 of Schedule 1 to the Constitutional Reform Act 20051, makes the following Rules in exercise of the powers conferred by section 31D (1), (2) and (3) of the Matrimonial and Family Proceedings Act 19842.

These Rules are made after consultation with the Family Procedure Rule Committee in accordance with section 31D(5)(b) of the Matrimonial and Family Proceedings Act 1984.

These Rules are made with the agreement of the Lord Chancellor in accordance with paragraph 2 of Part 1 of Schedule 1 to the Constitutional Reform Act 2005.

Citation, commencement and extent

1.

(1)

These Rules may be cited as the Family Court (Composition and Distribution of Business) (Amendment) Rules 2021.

(2)

These Rules come into force on 24th May 2021.

(3)

These Rules extend to England and Wales.

Amendments to the Family Court (Composition and Distribution of Business) Rules 2014

2.

The Family Court (Composition and Distribution of Business) Rules 20143 are amended as follows.

3.

In rule 7(1) (composition: appeals heard by a judge of High Court level) omit sub-paragraph (b).

4.

In Schedule 1 (allocation)—

(a)

in paragraph 2—

(i)

in sub-paragraph (c), omit “where the parties consent to permission being granted and to the substantive order sought”;

(ii)

in sub-paragraph (f)—

(aa)

in paragraph (i) for “; or” substitute “.”; and

(bb)

omit paragraph (ii); and

(b)

in paragraph 4 omit sub-paragraphs (a) and (d).

Sir Andrew McFarlane
President of the Family Division

I agree

David Wolfson
Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State
Ministry of Justice
EXPLANATORY NOTE
(This note is not part of the Rules)

These Rules amend the Family Court (Composition and Distribution of Business) Rules 2014 (S.I. 2014/840) (“the 2014 Rules”).

Rule 3 omits from the 2014 Rules the provision which routes appeals from decisions in financial remedy proceedings made by a district judge of the Principal Registry of the Family Division, or of a person appointed to act as a deputy or as a temporary additional office for such a district judge, to a judge of High Court level in the family court. Such appeals will instead be allocated under rule 6 or 7(2) of the 2014 Rules.

Rule 4 amends Schedule 1 to the 2014 Rules to make provision for all proceedings under section 12 or 13 of the Matrimonial and Family Proceedings Act 1984, or under Schedule 7 to the Civil Partnership Act 2004 (c. 33) to be allocated to a judge of district judge level in the family court, subject to the provisions of rule 15(2) of the 2014 Rules.