X v Y [2019] EWHC 1713 (Fam)

This article, the anonymous writer explains, is not about abuse during the marriage, but rather the abuse hidden in court procedure, in particular how the habitual disregard of FPR PD 27A1 paves the way to procedural ambush, why this matters, and what must change in order to safeguard justice.

DJ Dodsworth’s short judgment gives a blueprint of how not to prepare a case for trial, and how not to make a relief from sanctions application.

Judgment date: 29 January 2025 https://caselaw.nationalarchives.gov.uk/ewfc/b/2025/14 Recorder Chandler KC was forced to adjourn a three-day hearing in the face of W’s legal aid solicitors failing to comply with the Family Court’s procedures. The judge made it clear that where a