A final hearing is the hearing at which the Family Court in England and Wales hears the evidence in a contested children case and decides it. In private law proceedings begun on Form C100 it is the last of the stages set out in Practice Direction 12B, reached only where the dispute has not been resolved at the First Hearing Dispute Resolution Appointment or the Dispute Resolution Appointment.[1] Unlike those hearings it is a trial: rule 22.2 of the Family Procedure Rules provides that facts to be proved at a final hearing are proved by oral evidence, the parties and any witnesses are questioned on their written statements, and the court gives a reasoned judgment and makes a final order.[2] Cafcass describes it as the hearing “where the court will make the final decision on the disputed issues”.[3]
The court decides the case by applying section 1 of the Children Act 1989: the child’s welfare is paramount, the welfare checklist in section 1(3) must be considered, the presumption of parental involvement in section 1(2A) applies unless the contrary is shown, and no order is made unless it is better for the child than no order.[4] Where domestic abuse has been found, the court must explain how its findings have influenced the arrangements it orders.[5] The usual practice in children cases is that no order for costs is made.[6] In January to March 2026 the average private law case took 35 weeks from application to final order, and in 49 per cent of disposals neither party had a lawyer.[7]
Definition and purpose
The final hearing is where the court determines the application. Everything before it, the safeguarding checks, the FHDRA, any fact-finding hearing, the section 7 report and the DRA, is designed either to settle the case or to prepare it for this hearing. HM Courts and Tribunals Service tells parents that “the final hearing is quite different from the other hearings you will have been at and will probably take place in a larger court room to allow room for any witnesses or experts that need to attend”.[8] The purpose is to give each party a fair opportunity to put their evidence and case, to test the other side’s, and to obtain a decision with reasons.
Most private law cases do not reach a final hearing. Practice Direction 12B anticipates that many will end with a consent order at the FHDRA and that most of the rest will be listed for a DRA, at which the court considers whether that hearing can itself be the final hearing.[1] A contested final hearing is therefore the exception, reached where the parents disagree about something the court must decide, such as where the child lives, whether and how much time the child spends with a parent, a move away, a change of school, or the child’s name.
The term is also used for the final hearing in financial remedy proceedings, in public law care proceedings, and in applications for injunctions under Part IV of the Family Law Act 1996. This article concerns private law children cases; see financial remedy proceedings and FL401 for the others.
Legal basis
The substantive law is section 1 of the Children Act 1989, together with the section under which the order is sought, most often section 8, and section 11, which allows a section 8 order to “contain directions about how it is to be carried into effect”, to “impose conditions”, and to be made “to have effect for a specified period”.[4][9] Procedure is governed by Part 12 of the Family Procedure Rules 2010, which requires the court at each hearing to set a date or period for the final hearing and allows it to give directions about the order of speeches and evidence.[10] Part 22 governs evidence: the court “may control the evidence by giving directions as to the issues on which it requires evidence”, may exclude admissible evidence, and requires witness statements to be served in advance, failing which the witness may not be called without permission.[2]
Practice Direction 27A, in the version in force from 2 March 2026, governs the bundle and the preliminary documents for every hearing in the Family Court; Practice Direction 12J applies where domestic abuse has been raised; and Part 4B of the Matrimonial and Family Proceedings Act 1984 prohibits cross-examination in person between an alleged victim and alleged perpetrator of abuse.[11][5][12] The standard of proof for any disputed fact decided at the final hearing is the balance of probabilities.[13]
When a final hearing is listed
The final hearing is listed at the FHDRA, where the court decides that no report is needed and asks “should the application be listed straightaway for a final hearing?”, or, more commonly, at the DRA, where the court “will give final case management directions” including the listing of the final hearing and a witness template.[1] Where a fact-finding hearing has been held, the final hearing follows the section 7 report prepared in the light of the findings, and paragraph 31 of Practice Direction 12J requires it to be before the same judge or presiding justice unless delay would harm the child.[5] Practice Direction 12B’s objective of judicial continuity “from the FHDRA to the making of a final order” applies to every case.[1]
The time between the DRA and the final hearing depends on court listing, the time estimate and the availability of the Cafcass officer where their attendance is directed. Paragraph 15 of Practice Direction 12B requires the timetable to be set “so that the dispute can be resolved as soon as safe and possible in the interests of the child”, having regard to significant dates in the child’s life.[1]
Before the hearing
The directions made at the DRA govern preparation. Each party files and serves a final witness statement by the date ordered; under rule 22.6 that statement “stands as the witness’s evidence-in-chief” at the hearing, and a witness whose statement has not been served in time may not be called without the court’s permission.[2] The party responsible under Practice Direction 27A, normally the applicant if represented, otherwise a represented respondent, or HMCTS where the court so directs in a case where all parties are litigants in person, prepares an e-bundle of no more than 350 pages, filed and served five working days before the hearing.[11] The preliminary documents, a case summary, statement of issues, position statement (no more than three pages in children proceedings), chronology, skeleton argument, reading list and witness template, are filed by 11am on the working day before.[11]
Failure to comply with Practice Direction 27A “may result in the court removing the case from the list” and in an adverse or wasted costs order.[11] Where the Cafcass officer has been directed to attend, their availability will have been checked before the date was fixed; where they have not, a party who wishes to question the author of the section 7 report must apply for a direction in good time, since the author attends “only if directed to do so by the Court”.[1] Cafcass advises a parent who disagrees with the report to tell the court what they are unhappy about so that the judge or magistrates can take it into account.[14]
A party who wants special measures, such as a screen, a separate waiting room or a video link, should have obtained a direction at an earlier hearing under Part 3A of the Family Procedure Rules; the court will also have identified before the hearing whether the prohibition on cross-examination in person applies and, if so, whether a qualified legal representative is to be appointed.[5][15] Practical preparation for a party without a lawyer, including the filing deadlines and what to bring, is set out at McKenzie Friend Services, a site operated by Family Legal Ltd, the publisher of this wiki, and on the court bundle and position statement pages.[16]
Who attends
Both parties must attend, with their legal representatives if they have them; rule 12.14 allows the court to proceed in the absence of a respondent who has had reasonable notice, and to refuse the application if the applicant does not attend.[17] A litigant in person may be accompanied by a McKenzie Friend, who may take notes and give quiet advice but may not address the court or question witnesses without its permission.[8][1] The witnesses are the parties, the section 7 author where directed, any expert whose report has been admitted, and any other witnesses for whom permission was given, such as a new partner, a grandparent or a professional.
The child does not attend, other than in exceptional cases and after separate consideration; the child’s wishes and feelings are put before the court through the section 7 report or, where the child has been made a party under rule 16.4, through a children’s guardian and the child’s solicitor.[1][14] The hearing is in private, but an accredited journalist or legal blogger may attend under the Family Court’s reporting provisions; see transparency in the Family Court.
What happens on the day
A final hearing follows a set sequence. After preliminary matters, such as late evidence or the order of witnesses, the applicant’s case is heard first: the applicant confirms their statement on oath or affirmation, may be asked a small number of supplementary questions, is cross-examined by the respondent or the respondent’s advocate, and may be re-examined.[2][8] The applicant’s other witnesses follow. The respondent and the respondent’s witnesses then give evidence in the same way. The Cafcass officer, where attending, usually gives evidence after the parties, or at a fixed time to suit their other commitments, and is questioned by both sides on the report and recommendation.[1] Each party then makes closing submissions, the applicant usually last. The judge or magistrates give judgment, either immediately after a short adjournment or on a later date, and make the final order.[8]
HMCTS guidance describes the experience for a parent: “You will probably be asked to take an oath or affirm (make a formal declaration) to promise that what you say to the court is true”; the other party or their lawyer may then ask questions, “known as ‘cross-examination'”, and each party has the chance to give their side “but you must let the other person finish speaking to the court first”.[8] Where the prohibition in section 31R of the Matrimonial and Family Proceedings Act 1984 applies, the questions for the protected witness are put by the party’s own advocate or by a court-appointed qualified legal representative, and where neither is available in a case not covered by the prohibition the judge may require a litigant in person to put questions through the bench.[12][15]
Rule 22.1 allows the court to limit the issues on which it hears evidence and the time allowed for cross-examination, and the witness template prepared under Practice Direction 27A sets out the time allocated to each witness.[2][11] A one-day hearing is typical for a case with two parties and a Cafcass officer; cases with a combined fact-finding, several lay witnesses or an expert take longer. Judgment in the Family Court is often given orally with a note taken by the advocates or the legal adviser; a written judgment or reasons may be provided where the case is complex or where a party asks for one for the purpose of an appeal.[18]
How the court decides
The court decides the application under section 1 of the Children Act 1989. Section 1(1) makes the child’s welfare “the court’s paramount consideration”; section 1(3) requires the court, in a contested section 8 application, to have regard to the ascertainable wishes and feelings of the child in the light of age and understanding, the child’s physical, emotional and educational needs, the likely effect of any change in circumstances, age, sex, background and relevant characteristics, any harm suffered or at risk of being suffered, how capable each parent and other relevant person is of meeting the child’s needs, and the range of powers available to the court.[4] Section 1(2A) requires the court to presume, unless the contrary is shown, that the involvement of each parent will further the child’s welfare, and section 1(5) prohibits any order unless “doing so would be better for the child than making no order at all”.[4]
The section 7 report is evidence, not a decision: section 7(4) provides that the court “may take account of” any statement in the report and any evidence given about it “in so far as the statement or evidence is, in the opinion of the court, relevant to the question which it is considering”.[19] A court that departs from the recommendation of the Cafcass officer must explain why. Where domestic abuse has been found or admitted, paragraphs 36 and 37 of Practice Direction 12J require the checklist to be applied in the light of the findings, and paragraph 40 requires the court “always” to make clear how the findings influenced its decision and, if contact is ordered notwithstanding a finding, why the order will not expose the child to a risk of harm.[5] The welfare checklist is explained on Family Law Wiki.
Possible outcomes
| Order | What it does | Provision |
|---|---|---|
| Child arrangements order: live with | Names the person or persons with whom the child lives, which may be one parent or both under a shared arrangement | Children Act 1989, s.8[4] |
| Child arrangements order: spend time with | Defines when the child spends time or otherwise has contact with a parent or other person; may be direct, indirect, supervised or supported, and may be phased | s.8; PD12B 15.4[1] |
| Prohibited steps order | Prevents a specified step, such as removal from the jurisdiction or a change of school, without the court’s consent | s.8[4] |
| Specific issue order | Decides a specific question, such as schooling, medical treatment, religion or a change of name | s.8[4] |
| Directions and conditions | Attached to any section 8 order: how it is carried into effect, conditions on a named person, handover arrangements, a specified period | s.11(7)[9] |
| Activity direction or condition | Requires attendance at a programme such as Planning Together for Children or a domestic abuse perpetrator programme | ss.11A to 11B; PD12J 33[5] |
| Family assistance order or monitoring | Cafcass or the local authority advises, assists and befriends, or monitors compliance with the order | ss.16 and 11H; PD12B 15.5[1] |
| Section 91(14) order | Bars further applications without permission for a specified period; considered where further applications would constitute abuse | s.91(14); PD12J 37A[5] |
| No order | Where the court is not satisfied that an order would be better for the child than none, or the parties have agreed and no order is needed | s.1(5)[4] |
| Dismissal | The application fails; the existing arrangements, or an earlier order, continue | s.1[4] |
The order is drawn up in the standard form, sealed and sent to the parties. A child arrangements order regulating living or contact arrangements ceases to have effect if the parents live together for a continuous period of more than six months.[9] Practice Direction 12B encourages phased implementation of new arrangements and discourages listing review hearings unless necessary and for a clear purpose.[1]
After the final hearing
A party who wishes to challenge the decision needs permission to appeal, granted only where “the appeal would have a real prospect of success; or there is some other compelling reason why the appeal should be heard”, and must file an appellant’s notice “within 21 days after the date of the decision of the lower court” unless the court directs otherwise.[18] Permission may be sought from the judge at the end of the hearing or from the appeal court. An appeal is a review of the decision, not a rehearing, and findings of fact and evaluative welfare judgments are disturbed only where the judge was wrong or the process unfair.[18]
An order can be varied or discharged on a fresh C100 if circumstances change, and breach is dealt with on Form C79 under the enforcement provisions of the Children Act 1989 and paragraph 21 of Practice Direction 12B, which requires enforcement applications to be listed within 20 working days, before the same judge if possible.[1] See enforcing a child arrangements order. A section 91(14) order, where made, means that a further application requires the court’s permission first.[5]
Costs
The Supreme Court confirmed in Re T (Children) [2012] UKSC 36 that “it is common in family proceedings, and usual in proceedings involving a child, for no order to be made in relation to costs”, because the court “does not wish the spectre of an order for costs to discourage those with a proper interest in the child from participating”; the practice does not apply “where, for example, the conduct of a party has been reprehensible or the party’s stance has been beyond the band of what is reasonable”.[6] Each party therefore ordinarily pays their own lawyers, if any, whatever the outcome. There is no separate court fee for the final hearing; the £270 fee (fees order 2.1, July 2026 edition of EX50) is paid on issue of the C100 and EX50 lists no fee for a hearing or for filing a bundle.[20]
Statistics
| Measure | January to March 2026 | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Private law cases started | 15,534 | Up 16 per cent on the same quarter of 2025[7] |
| Private law orders made | 27,663 | Down 4 per cent[7] |
| Average time from application to final order | 35 weeks | Down five weeks[7] |
| Cases disposed within 26 weeks | 52 per cent | Up seven percentage points[7] |
| Disposals with neither party represented | 49 per cent | Up three percentage points[7] |
| Disposals with both parties represented | 13 per cent | Down one percentage point[7] |
The Ministry of Justice does not publish the proportion of cases that end at a contested final hearing rather than by consent. The next Family Court Statistics Quarterly, for April to June 2026, is due on 24 September 2026.[7]
See also
- First Hearing Dispute Resolution Appointment
- Dispute Resolution Appointment – where most final hearings are listed
- Fact-finding hearing
- Section 7 report – the main welfare evidence
- Cafcass
- Court bundle
- Position statement
- Litigant in person
- Appeals
- Enforcing a child arrangements order
- Welfare checklist – how the court decides
- Child arrangements order
- McKenzie Friend
References
- Practice Direction 12B: Child Arrangements Programme. Ministry of Justice. Accessed 5 September 2026.
- Family Procedure Rules 2010, Part 22: Evidence. Ministry of Justice. Accessed 5 September 2026.
- What happens in private law proceedings. Cafcass. Accessed 5 September 2026.
- Children Act 1989, section 1: Welfare of the child. legislation.gov.uk. Accessed 5 September 2026.
- Practice Direction 12J: Child arrangements and contact orders: domestic abuse and harm. Ministry of Justice. version of 28 April 2024. Accessed 5 September 2026.
- Re T (Children) [2012] UKSC 36. Find Case Law, The National Archives. 25 July 2012. Accessed 5 September 2026.
- Family Court Statistics Quarterly, January to March 2026. Ministry of Justice. 25 June 2026. Accessed 5 September 2026.
- Guide for separated parents: children and the family courts (CB7). HM Courts and Tribunals Service. updated 9 October 2024. Accessed 5 September 2026.
- Children Act 1989, section 11: General principles and supplementary provisions. legislation.gov.uk. Accessed 5 September 2026.
- Family Procedure Rules 2010, Part 12: Children proceedings except parental order proceedings and proceedings for applications in adoption, placement and related proceedings. Ministry of Justice. Accessed 5 September 2026.
- Practice Direction 27A: Family proceedings: court bundles. Ministry of Justice. version in force 2 March 2026. Accessed 5 September 2026.
- Matrimonial and Family Proceedings Act 1984, section 31R: Prohibition of cross-examination in person: victims of offences. legislation.gov.uk. Accessed 5 September 2026.
- In re B (Children) (Care Proceedings: Standard of Proof) [2008] UKHL 35. House of Lords. 11 June 2008. Accessed 5 September 2026.
- The court asks an FCA to write a report if your case goes beyond the first hearing (section 7 reports). Cafcass. Accessed 5 September 2026.
- Matrimonial and Family Proceedings Act 1984, section 31W: Alternatives to cross-examination in person. legislation.gov.uk. Accessed 5 September 2026.
- How to prepare for a family court hearing. McKenzie Friend Services (Family Legal Ltd). Accessed 5 September 2026.
- Family Procedure Rules 2010, rule 12.14: Attendance at hearings. legislation.gov.uk. Accessed 5 September 2026.
- Family Procedure Rules 2010, Part 30: Appeals. Ministry of Justice. Accessed 5 September 2026.
- Children Act 1989, section 7: Welfare reports. legislation.gov.uk. Accessed 5 September 2026.
- Family court fees (EX50). HM Courts and Tribunals Service. updated 13 July 2026. Accessed 5 September 2026.
- Child arrangements services and prices. Family Law Service (Family Legal Ltd). prices as published 6 September 2026. Accessed 5 September 2026.
External links
This article is part of Family Court Wiki, published by Family Legal Ltd. It is general information about the law of England and Wales, not legal advice. Last reviewed 6 September 2026. About this site and editorial policy · Report an error.