The Family Division
This Division of the High Court has the jurisdiction to deal with all matrimonial matters:
- The Children Act 1989
- The Child Abduction and Custody Act 1985
It also deals with:
- Matters relating to Part IV Family Law Act 1996 (Family Homes & Domestic Violence),
- Wardship and adoption applications,
- Declarations in medical treatment cases,
- Final Dissolution matters (Civil Partnerships)
The Principal Registry of the Family Division (PRFD) also has responsibility for maintaining the index of all Decrees Absolute (Divorce and Annulments) in England and Wales.
The Family Division Group Manager
The Area Director for Family is responsible for the smooth running of the Family Division and is supported by the PRFD Court Manager, Rory Munro.
The Family Administration Branch
The Family Administration Branch is the largest branch within PRFD. The branch comprises of 9 sections which each have their own responsibility. They are as follows:
Divorce Section A (020 7947 6954) (PRFD.divorcea@HMcourts-service.gsi.gov.uk) deals with all matters relating to the issue and service of petitions for Divorce, Judicial Separation and Nullity. It also processes petitions for Declaration of Marriage and Declaration of Parentage. Petitions under the Civil Partnership Act 2004 are also filed in this Section. Applications for Bailiff Service and deemed / dispense service are processed in this section.
Divorce Section B (020 7947 7013) (PRFD.divorceb@HMcourts-service.gsi.gov.uk) primarily deals with the processes (applications for Directions for Trial) that lead to parties obtaining their Decree Nisi and Absolute.
Decree Section C (020 7947 6971) (PRFD.divorcec@HMcourts-service.gsi.gov.uk) processes applications for financial orders and non-molestation injunctions, general applications filed within divorce proceedings and the issue of Originating applications. In addition they deal with all divorce documents lodged simply for placement on the court file.
Decree Absolute Search Section (020 7947 7017) (PRFD.decreeabsolutesearches@HMcourts-service.gsi.gov.uk) the Principal Registry of the Family Division holds a central index of all Decree Absolute granted in England and Wales from 1858 to date. This Section will also hold a central index of Final Dissolution Orders following the legislation changes in December 2005. This Section also deals with enquiries relating to Attachment of Earnings payments and Reciprocal Enforcements.
Matters relating to Children are divided between 3 sections:
Public Law (020 7947 7930) (PRFD.publiclaw@HMcourts-service.gsi.gov.uk) deals with care cases involving local authorities and ensures the demands of the judicial case management Protocol are met.
Private Law (020 7947 7006) (PRFD.privatelaw@HMcourts-service.gsi.gov.uk) handles all residence, contact and specific issue applications between parents and / or other relatives. Wardship, Child Abduction and Inherent Jurisdiction cases for the High Court are also issued in this Section. Non-molestation injunctions are also processed in this Section provided there is an application regarding the child(ren) of the family filed (otherwise Section C would process). They maintain the register for the Parental Responsibility Agreements.
The Adoption Section handles all aspects of the adoption from issuing to the service of the final orders made by the High Court Judges. (Note: it is considered inappropriate to email the court on adoption issues).
The Court Section’s (020 7947 6020) (PRFD.familycourtorders@HMcourts-service.gsi.gov.uk) main function is to provide administrative support to the District Judges and to ensure the courts run smoothly and production of all orders made by (Deputy) District Judges. They also process all requests for transcripts of hearings and judgements that take place at the Registry.
The List Office (020 7947 7400) (PRFD.districtjudgeslistings@HMcourts-service.gsi.gov.uk) lists all cases before District Judges at First Avenue House. They also set up in-court telephone conference calls (subject to availability) The Section also prepares the Daily List; this sets out the cases to be heard each day and the court to which they are assigned. The Cause List for the following working day is available from 3.00pm, visit www.hmcourts-service.gov.uk/cms/list_prfd.htm.
The Family Administration Branch is headed by 2 Deputy Court Managers; Amanda Connolly is responsible for Divorce and Listing, Anne Marie Munn is responsible for Public and Private Law Sections, Adoption and Court Section.
Clerk of the Rules Branch – Family Division (020 7947 6543) (PRFD.Familyhighcourt@HMCourts-service.gsi.gov.uk) This Department is responsible for all Family High Court and Circuit Judge listings and orders emanating there from. It also prepares the Daily List; this sets out the cases to be heard each day and the court to which they are assigned, visit www.hmcourts-service.gov.uk/cms/list_family.htm.
Ruth Few is the Deputy Court Manager for the Clerk of the Rules Branch.
You can now email the Principal Registry
When you e mail the Principal Registry the subject line of your mail must contain one or more of the following:
- The case file reference number
- If relating to a hearing, the date and time of the hearing
- If you are making a complaint, please add the word complaint’ (but see below for the e mail address)
You may not file any document in Family Proceedings by e mail. Any attachment intended for filing will be disregarded.
When you email us you will receive an automated response acknowledging receipt of your email. A further response within 5 working days, which will either answer your query or indicate when you will receive a reply and in what form (see below).
Please note that the Court may consider that due to the content of its proposed response, it may not be appropriate to reply to your enquiry by email. In such circumstances we will inform you of our intention.
In view of the above it would be helpful to provide a contact telephone number, as it may be easier to talk with you, rather than go into correspondence.
If you decide to contact us by email, please do not communicate the same message in another format (letter, fax etc.) as this will lead to duplication of work and cause delays.
Enquiries that are not specifically case related
If you have a general enquiry which is not related to a specific matter you can e mail PRFD.Familygeneralenquiries@HMcourts-service.gsi.gov.uk. This address will be monitored by our Customer Service Officer and IT Service Manager. This is also the address to use if you have a complaint to make or any other comments you would like to make about our service. Enquiries regarding the video conferencing facilities that are available at First Avenue House can also be addressed here.