Speech by Sir James Munby, President of the Family Division
26 February 2016
On the last occasion when you kindly asked me to speak at this
splendid event, I noted that the pace of reform had slowed. Our primary
task last year was retrenchment and consolidation – making sure that all
the reforms were properly embedded and that there was no backsliding.
Today I have to tell you that we are now moving forward into a new phase
of reform; reform so fundamental that in retrospect the great reforms
implemented in April 2014 will seem modest in comparison.
Some of these are reforms which are already in progress – even if
that progress has been much less rapid than I would have wished. In
relation to Transparency, Dr Julia Brophy of Oxford University, together
with NYAS and, very importantly and most revealingly, a group of young
people, have produced a valuable research report analysing some of the
effects of the Guidance I issued in January 2014. That work is now being
supplemented with a further short research project by Dr Brophy. At the
same time, Dr Julie Doughty of Cardiff University is undertaking some
parallel and equally important research. I hope to be able, within the
next few months, to issue for consultation draft Guidance on how better
to anonymise judgments so as to minimise the risk of ‘jig-saw’
identification.
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