Schedules of Allegations are usually used by the family court in children cases when deciding whether allegations of domestic abuse are true.
Coercive control is an allegation of domestic abuse which you may allege against your former partner or they may allege against you.
In a recent case called Re HN and Others the Court of Appeal decided that Schedules of Allegations are not to be used when a parent is alleging coercive control. This is because coercive control is about a pattern of behaviour over a period of time rather than one single incident.
You can read the judgment here:
https://www.judiciary.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/H-N-and-Others-children-judgment-1.pdf
The problem for barristers and parents is that the Court of Appeal has not given clear guidance on what document should be used instead of a schedule. The Court of Appeal suggests a short statement from each party describing what it was like to be in a relationship with the other parent.
We have to wait for the final guidance and in the meantime do our best to put these allegations to the court.
In our earlier blogs we explained Fact Finding Hearings and Schedules of Allegations:
Should you need representation at a fact finding hearing or help with drafting a statement or schedule, please just contact us on 0117 214 1797 or email us at office@childreninthemiddle.co.uk