When a court makes directions, which usually involve one or both of the parties to an action having to do certain things by a certain time, such as file documents, the court will, at the same time, set the next hearing date. At least that usually happens within family proceedings.
Not so apparently within CSA tribunal actions. There, recent experience has taught me that the norm is for the tribunal to wait until the directions have been complied with before a new hearing date has been set.
What a nonsense. There are many reasons why any party to CSA tribunal hearings will want to delay matters being dealt with. Such a practice, if widespread, can only cause delay to parents hoping to see an end to the tribunal proceedings. While the tribunal waits for, say, documents to come in, slots in the tribunal’s diary are lost.
Andrew Lee, Collaborative Family Lawyer, Gregory Abrams Davidson, Liverpool.
Tel: 0151 236 5000
