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Hi Guys, I'm not super new to the forum.
Do I need a position statement for a child arrangements first hearing?
How do I ask to bring one?
What else do I bring?
How do I ask for an interim statement for contact?
Many thanks.
The court notice says
COMPLIANCE
a). No document other than a document specified in this order or sent/ delivered in accordance with the Rules or any Practice Direction shall be sent/delivered by any party without the court’s permission.
b). Any application to vary this order or for any other order is to be made to the allocated judge on notice to [ ] / all parties.
c). In the event of non-compliance by any person with any order or direction made today, each party shall be responsible for notifying the court of the same, in order to avoid delay.
hi montana,
take a position statement to every one of your hearings. its very standard. will you have a barrister or solicitor with you? if you are, just get them to prepare positions statment and they will take care of it.
in first hearing, court will decide on interim order until next hearing. all depends on your situation, and what kind of contact you are seeking etc.
Hi Bill, thanks for replying.
I'm LIP. And have no money. I just would like to know if I need to file with court and another side. Do you know what the compliance means?
I can't see where a Position statement is required, except in a Bundle at later hearings.
I will complete a position statement anyway but would like to know I am not upsetting the court. As then I might not even bother.
hi,
just ignore compliance stuff. thats only if you send random stuff to court like photo of you having nice time with child lol. they dont want this type of material unles they ask for it.
position statement is the norm. you can email it to the court and to your ex in advance. i had my barrister with me. we just gave position statement to judge and ex on the day. dont worry. in position statement just briefly note what happened in your relationship/break-up, how much you are seeing your children, or your not seeing them at all, and how much contact you are seeking.
heres some good tips for PS:
https://childlawadvice.org.uk/information-pages/writing-a-position-statement/
Hi there
It’s perfectly acceptable to prepare a brief two page position statement to take with you to the hearing, giving a little more detail about your background, the issues and what you would like the court to do... I’ll link some further info about format etc.
During your case, if there is some evidence you wish to file with the court, you can either ask the courts permission to file it, whilst in the hearing itself, or you can write/email the court and ask permission.
It’s possible that the court will ask both parties to provide statements as the case moves forward, in that situation, the statement can be longer and evidence can be attached to to it.
It’s a good idea to take a notepad with you, a bottle of water, a book or magazine to read and change for the coffee machine.
It’s advisable to ask for an interim order for contact on the actual application form, otherwise the court may not allow enough time to discuss it at the first hearing.... you can still ask of course, but if there have been any allegations made, the court may want to order welfare reports before agreeing to contact.
Hopefully, cafcass will try and get some agreement between you and your ex before you go into the hearing...if she is refusing you contact, it might be worth suggesting using a contact centre to restart contact.
Best of luck
Here's those links to info about how to structure statements and also a template that you can use.
http://www.thecustodyminefield.com/flapp/positionstatements.html
Template -
www.thecustodyminefield.com/flapp/statement.html
A good website with info in plain english, some court videos to watch too.
www.mfjc.co.uk
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