BOOK REVIEW
THE FAMILY COURT PRACTICE 2011
Editor-in-Chief: Lord Wilson and a series of contributors
ISBN: 978 1 84661 281 7
Jordan Publishing Limited
“WHERE DO I FIND IT IN THE RED BOOK?” HERE’S THE 2011 EDITION OF ‘THE FAMILY COURT PRACTICE’.
An appreciation by Phillip Taylor MBE and Elizabeth Taylor of Richmond Green Chambers
Every year since 1993, ‘The Family Court Practice’ – the much valued ‘Red Book’ - has provided what has become the definitive work of reference in family law which Bracewell J eloquently described in her original preface to the work as ‘the comprehensive and authoritative guide for practitioners… universally accepted as a standard book of reference for judges and practitioners throughout the jurisdiction.’ It is what we see in court and fundamental for family practice.
This monumental, yet eminently accessible work of over 3,000 pages is updated annually and there are additional supplements. The 2011 edition reflects some quite enormous changes that have taken place since last year’s edition. The most important change, with which all family practitioners are familiarizing themselves, is the coming into force in April 2011 of the Family Procedure Rules 2010, which extend to some 273 pages of text. There have been additional changes made as well, to the structure of the book hence its new size.
The Red Book, as we call it, is certainly a credit to its distinguished team of fourteen contributors headed by Editor in Chief Lord Wilson, a Justice of the Supreme Court, His Honour Judge Anthony Cleary, and the General Editor and Consulting Editor, Black LJ.
The fact that this work is published yearly keeps it topical and up to date, carrying on as it does, its laudable tradition of exemplifying -- in the words of Wilson LJ as he then was -- such attributes as its ease of use, compactness, clarity of presentation and the reliability of the text.
Logically structured, the book covers the full range of family proceedings in all relevant courts, from procedural guides and statutes in Parts I and II, to the Procedure Rules 2010 in Part III, (mentioned earlier), through to Statutory Instruments, Practice Guidance and European Regulations in Parts IV and V.
The lengthy and detailed index at the back is a useful tool for finding what you’re looking for in this massive text and of course there are tables of cases, PDs and CPR, FPR and Supreme Court practice directions. If you find yourself stumped by an abbreviation, there is an extensive table of these. For your additional convenience, the book comes with an accompanying CD ROM which is really excellent as a development resource for the PC and its successor applications in the future.
“Where do I find it in the Red Book?” is, according to Wilson, a commonplace query on the part of judges and woebetide the practitioner who hasn’t brought a copy along. So if you haven’t bought this year’s particularly important edition, better do it now. The publication date is stated as at May 2011 with immediate supplements.
