LIVERPOOL specialists in family law have expressed their concerns over proposals to increase court fees in care proceedings by more than 2,500%.
A number of bodies, including The Law Society and the NSPCC, have also spoken out, warning that plans could deny vulnerable children access to justice and expose them to serious risk.
The government consultation paper, Public Law Family Fees, has proposed a dramatic increase in court fees for care proceedings from £150 to £4,000.
“There is a real concern that children’s welfare will be put at risk,� said Helen Broughton, Liverpool Law Society past president and head of the family unit at Morecrofts.
“I would be concerned that local authorities will shy away from interfering with families, and it could find children desperately in need who are not being looked after.
“There have been cases throughout the decades of children killed, neglected and harmed by failures of professionals to look after them, and if the local authorities are going to have to pay £4,000 in court, then they will be thinking more than once about it.
“There is criticism that courts operate behind closed doors – now it will be the local authority who will be operating and making decisions, possibly without the courts overseeing their actions.�
Although the Government plans to set aside £40m for local authorities for this hike in court fees, this funding will not be ring-fenced, meaning the welfare of many children might be dictated by financial considerations.
Andrew Holroyd, president of the Law Society and partner at Liverpool firm Jackson Canter, said: “This rise could effectively price children involved in care disputes out of court and deny them the right to justice they need.
“Rather than court proceedings being issued, it is likely that compromises will be reached that are influenced more by financial considerations than what is best for these vulnerable children, leaving them at risk and without a voice.�
Dame Mary Marsh, NSPCC director and chief executive, said: “There is a real and serious risk that vulnerable children and their families will be prevented from having full access to justice if these proposals are implemented because some decisions about taking proceedings in relation to vulnerable children could be finance-led.�
There are concerns local authorities may pursue other strategies to avoid the high costs in care proceedings where a child will not be represented, such as giving parents a second chance in cases of neglect, or encouraging them to agree to the child being voluntarily accommodated temporarily instead of issuing proceedings.
Mr Holroyd added: “The interests of children are in danger of being made a secondary factor under these plans when they should be central. The Law Society will be working with the NSPCC to ensure these concerns are expressed in the consultation process.�