A major change to how family law cases are run could result in victims of domestic violence being allowed to waive their anonymity so family members who attacked, controlled or otherwise abused them could be named.
The measure is one of several proposals being considered in family law by Minister for Justice Jim O’Callaghan.
A similar system is already in place in certain criminal cases, where victims can waive their right to anonymity at the end of cases if their attacker is convicted. In cases where naming the accused would identify the victim, the offender can only be named at the end of a case and with the agreement of the victim.
However, naming parties in family-law cases may be more complicated if the aggressor had not been convicted of a crime in other proceedings or if children would be identified if a domestic abuser were named.
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Mr O’Callaghan has singled out for reform the in-camera rule, which means parties in family-law cases before the courts cannot be identified publicly, including in media reports. He said it had resulted in secrecy that risked undermining the legal system.
“In my view, the current system can be restrictive and changes in this area will improve the perception of impartiality and objectivity,” he said, pointing out the Constitution intended for the law to be “administered in public”.
“The in-camera rule, and the limited exemptions to the rule, have restricted knowledge and understanding of how private family-law justice is administered in practice,” he said.
“Ensuring transparency and promoting a greater understanding of the family-law system is critical to maintaining and building trust in it.”
Though near-blanket restrictions are expected to be maintained in family law cases, it is expected that changes will be considered that would lead to offenders being named in some controlled circumstances with the permission of victims.
The suggested changes arise from the completion of a study carried out by University College Cork and Trinity College Dublin.
The Department of Justice, which commissioned the report, said the process involved “a complete examination of the in-camera rule in Irish family law proceedings”. Part of the process also involved “an international comparative review, findings from a public survey, interviews with members of the judiciary and 18 focus groups”.
Hosting his first meeting of the Family Justice Development Forum on Monday, Mr O’Callaghan said he wanted a less adversarial family-law system, with more mediation and which put children at the centre of the process.
Arising from the in-camera rule research, Mr O’Callaghan said he now planned to establish a “private family-law reporting project”. This was aimed at addressing the lack of a “comprehensive system in Ireland for regularly and systematically reporting on private family-law proceedings”.
While the reporting project would retain the right to privacy of parents and children, it would “increase awareness and understanding of family-law proceedings, while building confidence and trust in the judicial determination of family law disputes”.
