Two adjourned cases have put the new laws regarding reporting of family law cases seriously at risk due to the delays involved in adjournments where objection is taken to reporting on the cases.
Inge Clissmann is the Senior Counsel involved in both cases which havce appeared before Mr Justice Keane and he has expressed his fears that the new rules may be “entirely unworkable.”
The first case is already a high profile case given the comments made by Mr Justice Henry Abbott wherein he alleged there was an attempt at both judicial and political interference on a case ruled by him. The father in this case had applied to the High Court to have the ruling giving his ex-wife custody of their son and made by Mr Justice Abbott set aside and returning to the earlier Circuit Court ruling giving him custody of one child.
Ms Clissman SC wanted the Court to hear the children on the application but the father has accused his ex-wife of “dragging” their children into court in order to delay his application. He said precious judgments showed the children had been alienated from him by their mother, and “they will only say what their mother tells them to say.”
Ms Clissman contended that if the case was allowed to be reported on again all their neighbours and friends their fate was being decided by a court in Dublin. Further reporting would “reopen those wounds.”
Mr justice Keane told Ms Clissman if the court excluded journalists because of concerns that parties would be identified, “that would mean the press would be excluded from the vast preponderance of cases despite the intent of the act.”
In the other case both counsel for the father and the mother objected to the journalist reporting and said that their case was so unique their child would be indentified on any reports. Mr Justice Keane said he would need evidence to support that claim before giving his ruling.
Both cases have been adjouned.