In heavily contested contact proceedings, the father had surreptitiously videoed an episode of contact, and his solicitors had sought an opinion from a psychologist, and provided anonymised information in support of the father’s application.
Held: The court must always be asked for permission to obtain expert reports, and the court should direct what assistance it needed. The solicitor should pay the wasted costs, and the father should pay the costs of the contact centre whose integrity he had attacked.
Citations:
Times 27-Feb-2001, Gazette 20-Apr-2001
Statutes:
Family Proceedings Rules 1991 (SI 1991/1247) 4.18 4.23
Legal Professions, Children
Updated: 08 April 2022; Ref: scu.81624