Corbett Le Quesne’s Jersey International Child Law Conference which focused on addiction took place on Friday the 14th of March at the Radisson Hotel Jersey.
Advocate Donohue (pictured) said: “This was the best child law conference yet. The speakers at this year’s child conference were absolutely excellent. We are always lucky with the quality of the speakers we attract but I really felt this year was particularly good.”
Lord Justice Peter Jackson was the key note speaker. He is an advocate of specialist Family Drug and Alcohol Courts (FDACs) which have seen huge savings and much higher success rates than in general court proceedings.
The Bailiff attended the conference and other senior members of the Jersey judiciary including the Deputy Bailiff Robert MacRae, Caroline Wright, Royal Court Commissioner and Jersey Family Judge Samantha McFadzean met with Lord Justice Peter Jackson to discuss his experience of theses specialist family courts in the UK.
Lord Justice Peter Jackson said: “Thank you for inviting us, and our Le Quesne friends, to your conference last week. It was a valuable and thought-provoking event, and I can quite see why it has become so popular. I also appreciated the opportunity to meet with your civic leaders for a very productive meeting. We were overcome by your warm welcome and generosity, and by Lizzie’s impeccable organisation. Altogether it was a memorable first visit to your beautiful island, and we are extremely grateful to you for making it happen.”
Advocate Corbett said: “Millions could be saved directly and indirectly, as well as countless other social benefits were Jersey to follow the UK in establishing a Family Drug and Alcohol Court ‘FDAC’. We want to make the most of the opportunity of having such a senior and experienced judge visiting the island to forge forward with an initiative that will hugely benefit the island. There is a cost in setting up a new court but it would quickly pay dividends because the cost of these drug and alcohol related cases is huge. The current system is extremely costly, not only in terms of the money involved in legal fees and paying for children to be in care but the emotional impact of separating parents and children can be devastating. The proposal is that specialist assistance would be provided in these cases.
“The experience from the UK has shown that with FDACs more children are able to return to the care of their parents or remain living with them, expensive contested hearings can be avoided and the outcomes for both parents and children are better. Managing cases well at the beginning results in savings in respect of mental health costs, criminal justice costs as well as the costs of keeping children in care down the line. This works because the parties all work together, in an intensive way throughout the process.”
Advocates Barbara Corbett and Nicholas Le Quesne first raised the issue of FDACs in 2012 when, with the encouragement of Eleanor Green from JFCAS, they invited District Judge Nick Crichton to attend a Jersey International Family Law Conference to speak about the huge advantages of specialist family drug and alcohol courts.
The Guardian’s obituary said of him: “Nick Crichton, who has died of cancer aged 75, was one of the most influential family judges of his generation and the pioneer of the specialist family drug and alcohol courts FDACs that have transformed the chances of keeping together families where one or both parents have addiction issues. The innovation has demonstrated the potential for the judicial system to play a wider role in problem-solving.”
