What happens at a court hearing?

1. Introduction
2. Why are you in court in the first place?
3. Orders and notification of proceedings
4. What happens when you get to court?
5. What happens when you get into the court room?
6. What happens at a court hearing – Conclusion

Introduction

I puked on my way to the first court hearing I ever attended. I’d been dreading the day. I couldn’t face my ex, couldn’t face her solicitor and was terrified of what came next because of the aggressive legal letters I’d been getting leading up to it.

I hadn’t slept.

Although to be fair, I hadn’t slept for weeks as I imagined worst-case scenarios about my future. Listening to relaxing music (I recommend some of the tracks from Brian Eno’s `Apollo: Atmospheres and Soundtracks‘)

The prospect of attending a court hearing can be stressful.

I’ve discussed this with legal professionals in the past. They’d skin me alive if they’re reading this (some definitely are) because they’d say I’m worrying people unnecessarily and that courts have come on in leaps and bounds to make them as gentle as possible.

They would say that though: It’s not their kids, their ruined marriage/relationship or their kids. It’s just another `day at the office’ for them. They know how the system works and it’s easy for them to forget (or even know) what it is like if they ever did at all.

Look…I know what it is like.

I’ve been through the courts as a litigant in person, assisted by a McKenzie Friend and for almost 2 decades. I’ve helped others do the same too in cases simple and complicated, happy and sad. So I’ve been on both sides of the fence and it was only when I started helping others I realised that a lot of what worried me wasn’t as stressful when I realised what was going on and got a little knowledge about how it all worked.

If I could just explain some of the stuff going on to people reading this, they’re going to worry a lot less (and probably get a lot more sleep).

Read enough legal blog posts and just about no one is talking about the human experience. Oh…they’ll tell you all about the Matrimonial Causes Act (1973), the Family Law Act (1996) and the Children Act (1989), but they aren’t going to talk about what it actually feels like or what is going to happen when you walk through the court building’s door.

This blog post is to redress that. Hopefully it will answer a few questions and hopefully a little certainty in the uncertain times you’re facing.

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Why you are in court in the first place?

You probably didn’t want to go to court. No one with any sense wants to go to court.

It’s a sensible stance. By the time you get there you should have (under normal circumstances) exhausted all other options to avoid it. There are various ways you can come to an agreement. These include:

1. Talking to the other party.
2. Writing to each other directly.
3. Writing to each other via a solicitor.
4. Attending mediation face to face.
5. Attending shuttle mediation.

These are all avenues you should explore before putting an application in (or facing one).

The exceptions to this are if there are domestic abuse allegations or the other party is going to do something to frustrate the application (such as following through on threats to move the children to Australia once they get a hearing date to stop them doing that).

Some people baulk at the prospect of mediation on the basis of cost. It’s a fair point until you consider that it going to be far cheaper than using a solicitor and going to court. Mediation is also less time consuming and far less stressful. Communication is key. If you can communicate in any shape or form, you should do so. Of course there are reasons when this doesn’t happen, such as a risk to physical safety.

You may keep communication channels open but you have just reached a point where it is clear you cannot agree on a key point which means you need a court to decide what happens.

If I could say just one thing to anyone who thinks they’re going to end up in court it would be `Do everything you can to avoid it – keep talking’.

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Orders and notification of proceedings

Once someone has made an application you’ll receive paperwork from the court.

If it’s the first hearing in your case, you’ll receive a ‘Notification of Proceedings’. After that, you’ll get an order after each hearing. It will explain what the court decided and include details about the next hearing.

The Notification of Proceedings will detail the following:

1. Where the hearing is taking place. It’ll have a name and address of the court. Be aware that many towns/cities have multiple courts – family courts, magistrates courts, civil justice centres, combined justice centres, etc. It’s not uncommon to attend a hearing in one location and the next in another – so make sure you take note to ensure you’re going to the right one.
2. If it’s an online hearing, you’ll be told whether it’s taking place via Microsoft Teams or CVP. Both are video conferencing systems used by the courts. If you have a computer, use that instead of your phone – it’ll make things a lot easier. If you can, test video calls using Zoom, WhatsApp, or similar apps beforehand. Make sure you can be seen and heard clearly before the hearing starts.
   1. Make sure you have the link before the hearing. It’s not uncommon for court staff to delay sending out these links – or to say they’ll send them at the last minute. Be ready to call the court if you haven’t received it. Make sure you have the correct number ahead of time. And if it doesn’t arrive, chase it up!
3. When the hearing is taking place. Many orders are listed for 10am—that’s when hearings usually begin. This does not mean your hearing will take place at 10am. Aside from the fact that public law cases (i.e. ones involving social services) take precedence it’s common for everyone who has a hearing that day (or in the morning) to be told to attend for 10am. This is to ensure you’re waiting for the court to call you, rather than the court waiting for you to turn up.
4. What type of hearing it is. If it’s your first hearing it’s going to be a First Hearing Dispute Resolution Appointment (FHDRA) or First Appointment (for child matters) or a First Directions Appointment (for finance cases). After that – cases tend to have certain formats (depending on whether they’re child or finance matters) but there can be variations depending on what happens and what is being dealt with. In child matters there can be review or directions hearings. Or Fact Finding hearings. Others are final hearings. The format of the hearing will differ depending on this. How you should prepare, what you should bring to court, etc. will also depend on this too.
5. How long the hearing is listed for. It can be something like 30 minutes for a review or directions hearing. It can be anything between half a day and several days for a trial, Fact Finding or Final Hearing. Hearings often overrun (although online hearings tend to be shorter).
6. What is being discussed. Sometimes hearings will focus on one issue – i.e. do the parties concerned agree with the recommendations of the CAFCASS report, what to do in the wake of a Fact Finding hearing, to check how contact is going, etc. Again, this will affect how you should prepare for the hearing.

No matter what, you should arrive at the court building an hour before your scheduled hearing—if it’s an in-person hearing rather than a virtual one.

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What happens when you get to court?

Arrive an hour early before the hearing starts! Some orders and Notifications of Proceedings will say that – but not all. Make sure you’re there an hour early whether it says or not.

There is a lot of variation in court buildings. Some of them are old – I’m thinking of places like the Royal Courts of Justice. Some of them are modern and purpose built – I’m thinking of Cambridge and Manchester. Others still are drab 70s buildings that look like sets from old cop dramas. They can be located in the middle of towns or cities or else they can be on the outskirts. Parking may or may not be a thing – do your research well before the day so there’s no stress over knowing your hearing is in 15 minutes but you can’t find anywhere to leave your car!

Doing this means you’ll be able to find your way around and hopefully relax a little (or if you’re like me, listen to music…)

1. Go through security. It’s similar to airport security. Don’t take any sharp objects or similar items with you. Security will confiscate them – and while they might return them when you leave, there’s no guarantee. You might be asked to take a sip of any drink you’re carrying, remove your belt, and put your bag through a scanner. They’ll run a metal detector over you too. I’ve had laptop chargers taken off me before on the grounds they’ve not been PAT tested, but not often. There seems to be a lot of variation around the country and changing rules too.
2. Find reception (security will usually tell you where!) to check in so the court knows you have arrived; they’ll ask for your name and case number so make sure you have it to hand. Make sure you do this – otherwise, court staff might assume you haven’t turned up. You might even hear your name called over the tannoy. Ask if the other party is there and where they are. Check the lists on the walls for your case if no one has told you to find out which court room it is in (it’ll say the name of the judge, magistrates or legal advisor you’re before too).
3. If you have a position statement, etc. find a clerk (they wear black robes and they’re usually looking harassed) and hand copies over to them to give to the court before the hearing. You’ll need a copy for the judge (or 3 if it’s magistrates). Provide a copy for the other party in the case too – or their solicitor), asking the clerk to give it to them or else find your ex’s solicitor and do that. On rare occasions, the court might refuse to accept your statement. They might say it wasn’t ordered or decide not to consider it at all. But this doesn’t happen often.
4. Find a consultation room to discuss things in private with your McKenzie Friend (if you have one). Courts vary massively in this respect – some courts have no consultation rooms at all, others have a small number and the more modern ones sometimes have enough for everyone. If you leave the room unattended, make sure you take all your belongings with you. They might get thrown away, and you shouldn’t be surprised if something goes missing after you’ve left it behind.
5. Introduce yourself to your ex’s solicitor if they have one. They may advise you on court procedure (they are meant to, under SRA guidelines which also says they should not attempt to mislead or bully you) but they cannot give you legal advice. They may give you a position statement from their client, accept yours and say they’ll read through it and come over for a chat in ten minutes to discuss matters. Be nice, ask them to explain things if you don’t understand but understand they work for your ex (and are officers of the court).
6. Your ex’s solicitor may speak to you. Sometimes, they won’t. It could be their client is vehemently opposed to what you would like ordered, it is pointless attempting to negotiate. In other situations your ex’s solicitor may attempt to persuade you (although bullying tactics are not unheard of, suggesting that if you don’t agree to what they want you’ll end up paying their legal costs). A good solicitor will talk through the issues with you, figure out what you can agree on, what you can’t, and try to find a workable solution. It’s worth noting at this point that if you are before a legal advisor orders can only be made by consent meaning that anything you can’t agree will not be made into an order too.
7. You/your ex’s solicitor will tell the court you’re ready to go in. It could be you’ve agreed everything and just want the court to rubber stamp it. It could be you have agreed some things but not others. It could be you’ve agreed nothing and want a court to decide what happens next.
8. A clerk will tell you it’s time to go and lead you to the court room. Or else there will be an announcement over a tannoy.

If you’re still asking `What happens at a court hearing?’ because the next section is the bit you really need to know.

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What happens when you get into the court room?

As I said before – courts come in all shapes and sizes. Some of them contain grand rooms with high ceilings, banks of seats, stands and a judge sitting behind a huge Royal Crest (the Royal Courts of Justice are a great example of this, although they have less impressive rooms built in the 1970s and in the basement).

Others are modern – light, airy, with desks all at the same level. There are microphones, sometimes a video screen, books, water to drink and doors at either end (for litigants like you to enter at one end and more at the other for the judges/magistrates/legal advisor to enter).

Usually you’ll sit in the front room of desks facing the judges/magistrates/legal advisor desk. They may or may not be there when you enter. There may be a member of the court staff (a `clerk of the court’) who stays in the room and then tells everyone to stand when they arrive through the doors behind their desk.

You may be seeing a judge.

There is only one of those in a hearing. Or 3 (sometimes 2) magistrates. Or a legal advisor. How you address them depends on who they are, but if you’re nervous stick to `sir’, `ma’am’ or `judge’ if they’re a judge – they’ll understand you don’t know the whole process and are entirely happy with common courtesy.

Regardless of who you see, there are no gowns, no wigs and no gavels. The first two are for criminal cases. And gavels? They’ve never been used in UK courts. Forget those American legal dramas!

It doesn’t make much difference to you if you’re before a judge or magistrates – they’re all part of the Family Court. I should mention that if you’re appearing before a legal advisor, they can only make orders that everyone has agreed to – nothing else.

The first topic is usually `housekeeping’: That’s ensuring the court has everything it needs to proceed with the hearing. It could be a safeguarding report from CAFCASS (a requirement before anything happens) or other documents. If you have a McKenzie Friend the court will check there is no objections to their presence and they are following all the rules required. You have a legal right to represent yourself – with or without a McKenzie Friend. Your ex not wanting one won’t stop you. Official guidance says McKenzie Friends shouldn’t have a personal interest in the case, like friends or family – but in reality, that often happens.

Once that is out the way, the hearing itself will take place.

As I say above – this next step varies wildly depending on the type of hearing you’re attending (that’s several blog posts worth – check this space…sorry!)

Sometimes the court will adjourn (i.e. everyone goes out for a period). That can be to allow the court to consider what has been said, to make a decision, to enable you to further negotiate with the other party, for lunch, to speak to your McKenzie Friend, etc.

When it’s all done though – the court will decide what is happening next or to make an order. Depending on the type of hearing it may read out its reasons (to ensure that what has been decided is consistent with the law) and to arrange details of the next hearing.

Normally the solicitor of the applicant will be asked to draft the order (or else the solicitor of anyone who is represented). If both parties are litigant in person the court will likely do it. You’ll get a copy by post and/or email within a couple of weeks. If that hasn’t happened…phone the court to chase for it!

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What happens at a court hearing – Conclusion

It’s hard to give you definitive advice. Different courts do different things. What happens depends on the hearing taking place, the judge you’re in front of, whether you’re alone, with a McKenzie Friend or represented and the circumstances of your case. What happens at a court hearing can vary without warning (or apparent reason…)

It’s why people like me are a thing.

What I’ve described is fairly typical…but don’t be surprised if it all goes out the window once you get to court! As a general rule I’d say `Prepare, prepare, prepare‘. Don’t leave it to the last minute. Have spare copies of documents. Expect the court to be disorganised, slow, and a bit chaotic. Take money for a coffee machine (if there is one) or for the cafe which some courts have. Have a spare battery pack for your phone. Take a book. Listen to relaxing music if you’re nervous. Don’t go alone.

We’ve been helping people in court for the last two decades now. When we’re by your side for the hearing (before, during and after it all takes place) we’ll be your guide and make sure you are maxing your chances of success. Start your journey with us today by booking an Ask Me Anything online session today!

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