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Consolidated Allocation and Gatekeeping Guidance for Private and Public Children Proceedings in the Family Court (England and Wales): Judicial Tiering, Urgency Standards, CAP/Pathfinder and PLO Processes, and Practitioner Obligations

Published on: 31 March 2026

Published by a LexisNexis Family expert
Legal News
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Article summary

Which proceedings are covered by the guidance?

The guidance broadly applies to all proceedings concerning children that are issued in the Family Court, including those brought under:

  • the Children Act 1989
  • the Family Law Act 1986
  • the Family Law Act 1996
  • the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 2008

It covers allocation across the whole of the Family Court judiciary, magistrates included, and is designed to ensure cases are directed to the appropriate judicial tier from the outset.

The guidance does not apply to proceedings issued and heard in the Family Division of the High Court, or to matters reserved to be heard by a full judge of the Family Division (see paragraphs 16–19 and the Schedule to The President’s Guidance Jurisdiction of the Family Court: Allocation of Cases within the Family Court to High Court Judge Level and Transfer of Cases from the Family Court to the High Court (24 May 2021)).

In addition, it does not alter the listing arrangements for Welsh language cases heard by the family judiciary in Wales...

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