Tag Archive for: PD12J

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This topic focuses on Practice Direction 12J and its application in private law children cases involving allegations of domestic abuse. It explains how the court is required to approach safeguarding, risk assessment, and decision-making where abuse is alleged.

Articles under this tag support self-represented parents by explaining how PD12J affects case management, fact-finding hearings, interim contact, and the court’s duty to prioritise safety while ensuring procedural fairness.

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Two adults review documents together at a table beside an open laptop, notebooks and folders

Jack and Paul’s Law: Ending the Presumption of Parental Involvement in Family Court

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Jack and Paul’s Law would remove the presumption of parental involvement. What the reform, Kate Kniveton’s High Court case and current domestic abuse safeguards mean for children and families.
Parent reviewing family court papers concerning safeguarding allegations and responses while a child is nearby© 2026 JSH Law Ltd. All rights reserved.

Supporting Male Victims Does Not Require Us to Disbelieve Women

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Men can experience domestic abuse, while women are disproportionately affected. How can family courts recognise every victim, assess evidence fairly and protect children?
A child's paper origami bird beside an organised navy family court evidence folder, symbolising the importance of children's experiences of domestic abuse.

What Did the Child See? Domestic Abuse, Fear and the Misuse of Parental Alienation in Family Court

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When a child sees, hears or experiences domestic abuse, the Family Court must examine the harm and evidence before attributing the child's fear to alienating behaviour.
Organised family court case papers, a navy folder and a gold pen on a wooden desk, illustrating Form C1A safeguarding and domestic abuse evidence preparation.

Form C1A Explained (2026): Domestic Abuse Allegations and Family Court

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How to complete the 2026 Form C1A, describe domestic abuse and coercive control, respond to allegations, protect confidential details and prepare evidence for family court.
JSH Law Resources and Guidance for Litigants in Person – practical family court information explained in plain English.© 2026 JSH Law Ltd. All rights reserved.

When the Towels Are “Wrong”: What Biderman’s Chart of Coercion Can Teach the Family Court

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Towels folded the “wrong” way can sound utterly trivial. But inside a wider system of coercion, small rules may tell us something about obedience, autonomy and the consequences of resistance. JSH Law examines Biderman’s Chart of Coercion, what it can help us understand about patterns of domestic abuse, and why it must never be mistaken for proof.
Jessica Susan Hill beside the title “When Domestic Abuse Becomes Normal”, illustrating a JSH Law article about children’s wishes, domestic abuse, child arrangements and safeguarding.© 2026 Jessica Susan Hill / JSH Law. All rights reserved.

When Domestic Abuse Becomes Normal: Why a Child’s Wish for Contact Cannot Be Read in Isolation

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A child can love an abusive parent, miss them and want contact with them. That does not, by itself, establish that contact is emotionally safe. Re C [2026] EWCA Civ 1216 exposes the difficult safeguarding question of how courts should understand children’s wishes when domestic abuse has shaped their understanding of family life.
JSH Law Resources and Guidance for Litigants in Person – practical family court information explained in plain English.© 2026 JSH Law Ltd. All rights reserved.

Seeing the Pattern: What the Major Coercive-Control Frameworks Can — and Cannot — Tell the Family Court

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There is no single test for coercive control. JSH Law compares the major frameworks used to understand patterns of abuse — from Evan Stark and Duluth to Emma Katz, DARA, Jane Monckton Smith, Robert Kaiser and Carisa Carlton — and asks what each can legitimately contribute to Family Court evidence.
Jessica Susan Hill beside a JSH Law commentary title examining Re C, domestic abuse obligations and Child Focused Courts in England and Wales.© 2026 JSH Law Ltd

“The Obligations Are Unchanged”: What Re C Really Says About Domestic Abuse in Child Focused Courts

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The Court of Appeal says domestic-abuse obligations remain unchanged under the new Child Focused Court model. That does not mean the Family Court is unreformed. It means faster procedure cannot dilute PD12J, safeguarding or procedural fairness.
JSH Law Resources and Guidance for Litigants in Person – practical family court information explained in plain English.© 2026 JSH Law Ltd. All rights reserved.

When the Paperwork Looks Right—but the Child Is Still Missing

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Family court paperwork can be technically complete while still losing the context that matters. This article examines eight developments in family justice—from domestic abuse and Cafcass evidence to AI, expert reports, neurodiversity and Child Focused Courts—and introduces a six-question framework for checking how important conclusions are reached.
JSH Law Resources and Guidance for Litigants in Person – practical family court information explained in plain English.© 2026 JSH Law Ltd. All rights reserved.

Does the Family Court Need a Fact-Finding Hearing? Cafcass, PD12J and Domestic Abuse Allegations

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If domestic-abuse allegations are disputed in a child-arrangements case, the Family Court does not automatically need a separate fact-finding hearing. But serious allegations cannot simply be left unresolved if Cafcass or the court needs to know whether they are true before assessing risk. This guide explains the current Cafcass practice aid, the PD12J test and what evidence the court actually needs.