The family court process: What does it look like?

3 September 2026

If you have never been in front of the family court before, it can often be quite a nerve-racking experience for you and for any children involved.

While we cannot ease the anxiety of attending court, often once the process has been explained, it can seem a little less daunting.

What does the family court do?

The family court is here to resolve any legal disputes between family members, with a particular focus on financial arrangements and child arrangements.

Their key responsibilities include:

• Child arrangements – Deciding where a child will live, how much time they will spend with parents and specific issues, such as schooling and medical care.
• Financial arrangements – This will give legally binding orders on how money, property and assets will be split as part of the divorce or ending of a civil partnership.
• Child protection – Public law cases, where the local authority or social services will step in to protect at-risk children.
• Injunctions – Creating protective orders to prevent domestic abuse or harassment.

Hearings in family courts tend to be private, less formal and they will always work within the best interests of any children involved.

Step one: Making the application

Before you can submit an application to the family court, prospective applicants are required to attend and attempt to resolve their issues via a mediation session and invite the other party to attend, unless an exemption applies, such as domestic abuse.

If you and your partner are going through a divorce, you may be able to resolve the surrounding financial and children issues through collaborative family law or Resolution Together, rather than attending court.

Here, both parties work together to come to an amicable solution for their divorce rather than leaving it to the judge’s discretion.

The team at Mander Hadley is committed to finding amicable solutions where possible. For more information, visit our collaborative family law page and our Resolution Together page

You must then issue an application to the court using specific forms, such as the C100 for child arrangements, which will set the process in motion.

The Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (CAFCASS) will then perform background safeguarding checks and write a letter to the court outlining their findings.

Step two: The first hearing

The first hearing acts as a planning and dispute resolution appointment so that both parties can see if they can come to a resolution before they go to court.

In this hearing, the judge and Cafcass officer will work together with the parties to try and reach a resolution.

Should you be unable to come to a resolution, the judge will then set a timetable and will then order the next steps and reports that will be needed.

Step three: Further investigations/ hearings

If ordered, you may be required to attend a separate hearing, dedicated to determining the facts of disputed allegations. This is known as a fact-finding hearing.

This is used if there are serious allegations, such as domestic abuse. The court will pause the case and hold a mini-hearing to decide what is more likely than not to have happened.

The Cafcass may be ordered to complete a detailed Section 7 report, which will typically take around 12 weeks.

In this report, they will outline their recommendations to the court surrounding child arrangements.

Step four: The final hearing

The final hearing is a form of hearing where both parties will give evidence and they can be questioned by the other party’s legal representatives.

The judge or Magistrates will listen to all of the evidence and then make a legally binding decision based on the welfare checklist.

Once the Court has made the final order, the Order must be upheld. If either party breaches the parameters of this order, you do not need to start a new case. Instead, you can apply for a suitable enforcement order.

How can we help?

We understand that nobody wants to attend court and that if you are going for the first time, it can be a scary process.

Our solicitors are here to offer expert guidance when you are entering the family court and will provide friendly, informative support throughout the various meetings and hearings.

The team here at Mander Hadley will talk you through the process to ensure that you are fully aware of everything that will go on during the family court process.

For more information on the family court, get in touch with our expert team.