{"id":277956,"date":"2026-03-18T10:08:50","date_gmt":"2026-03-18T10:08:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dominiclevent.com\/blog\/?p=277956"},"modified":"2026-03-18T10:08:50","modified_gmt":"2026-03-18T10:08:50","slug":"justice-secretary-david-lammy-rebrands-and-expands-problem-solving-family-court","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dominiclevent.com\/blog\/justice-secretary-david-lammy-rebrands-and-expands-problem-solving-family-court\/","title":{"rendered":"Justice secretary David Lammy rebrands and expands problem-solving family court"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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A problem-solving family court scheme championed by the president of the Family Division and praised by the lady chief justice will be rolled out nationally \u2013 under a new name.<\/p>\n

Lord chancellor David Lammy today announced \u00a317m to install more \u2018pathfinder\u2019 courts across England and Wales, now under the name \u2018child-focused courts\u2019. The announcement comes ahead of the justice select committee holding its first evidence session on the Courts and Tribunals Bill this afternoon.<\/p>\n

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The court formerly known as pathfinder was first piloted in North Wales and Dorset in 2022, with cases being resolved nearly three months more quickly than under the previous regime.<\/p>\n

The problem-solving child-led model currently operates in 10 out of 43 court areas, including Wales, Birmingham, Hampshire, Isle of Wight and West Yorkshire.\u00a0The \u00a317m announced today will support the model’s introduction in Northumbria, North Durham, Cleveland and South Durham, Lancashire, Cumbria, York and North Yorkshire, Cheshire and Merseyside, Northamptonshire, and Coventry and Warwickshire.<\/p>\n

The Ministry of Justice said the scheme will expand to the remaining court areas \u2018over the upcoming financial years\u2019. The department told the Gazette<\/em> it aims to complete the rollout by 2029.<\/p>\n

Family Division president Sir Andrew McFarlane has long championed the Pathfinder model. In his July 2024 A\u00a0View from the President\u2019s Chambers<\/a><\/em><\/strong>, he said Pathfinder \u2018has turned out to be more radical, and far more successful, than even its most ardent supporters would have anticipated\u2019.<\/p>\n

The lady chief justice praised the model when she appeared before the House of Commons justice committee in 2024.<\/p>\n

Lammy said today: \u2018Court backlogs are not just numbers on a page. When it comes to the family courts, they represent victims waiting, families in limbo and children and domestic abuse victims left to linger in harm\u2019s way. That is why the national rollout of the child focused courts matters so much. It will protect, support and hear the voices of children, helping family courts make safe and fair decisions without delay.<\/p>\n

\u2018It also shows that, through innovative reforms, we can make our courts work better, tackle delays and bring down the backlog so more victims and families get the swift justice they deserve.\u2019<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n

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