PART 11APPLICATIONS UNDER PART 4A OF THE FAMILY LAW ACT 1996 OR PART 1 OF SCHEDULE 2 TO THE FEMALE GENITAL MUTILATION ACT 2003

Parties11.6.

F1A1

Where the person who is the subject of proceedings is not the applicant and is a child, the court must consider, at every stage in the proceedings, whether to make that child a party to proceedings.

(For when a child should be made a party to proceedings generally see paragraph 7 of Practice Direction 16A).

(1)

In proceedings under this Part, a person may file a Part 18 application notice for that person or another person to—

(a)

be joined as a party; or

(b)

cease to be a party.

(2)

As soon as practicable after receiving an application under paragraph (1), the court must do one of the following—

(a)

in the case only of an application under paragraph (1)(a), grant the application;

(b)

order that the application be considered at a hearing, and fix a date for the hearing; or

(c)

invite written representations as to whether the application should be granted, to be filed within a specified period, and upon expiry of that period act under sub-paragraph (a) or (b) as it sees fit.

(3)

The court officer must inform the following persons of the court's action under paragraph (2)—

(a)

the applicant under paragraph (1);

(b)

(if different) the applicant for the F2... protection order and the respondent to that application;

(c)

(if different) the person who is the subject of the proceedings; and

(d)

any other person directed by the court.

(4)

The court may at any time direct—

(a)

that a person who would not otherwise be a respondent under these rules be joined as a party to the proceedings; or

(b)

that a party to the proceedings cease to be a party,

and such a direction may be made by the court of its own initiative as well as upon an application under paragraph (1).

(5)

Where the court directs the addition or removal of a party, it may give consequential directions about—

(a)

service on a new party of a copy of the application for the F3... protection order and other relevant documents; and

(b)

the management of the proceedings.