Users' guide to Bar Reports
FNF Scotland on Wednesday, August 29, 2012 at 10:35AM The first user's guide to Bar Reports has been published by Families Need Fathers Scotland as part of a campaign to introduce national standards and oversight of bar reporting (see Press Release).
In Scots law where an application for contact or residence cannot be agreed between former partners (or others applying for contact such as grandparents or wider family members) a Sheriff or Court of Session judge may order a 'Bar Report' to help him or her get a better sense of how to identify the best arrangements for the welfare of the child.
The Bar Report provides further information about the circumstances of a child and the proposed contact or residence arrangements that have been requested. Experience shows that the recommendations at the end of a Bar Report are relied on heavily by the Sheriff in reaching a decision.
FNF Scotland is not seeking to alter the way Bar Reports are carried out to favour fathers though non-resident parents, mostly fathers, do feel they are at a disadvantage in the process.
The purpose of the guide is to make the process more transparent and accessible to those involved in child contact actions. It is not a guide to coach parents through how to get a favourable Bar Report but, being better informed, it may help them represent their interests and the realities of the relationship with their children more effectively.
Court, bar reports, contact, standards
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