Friday 10 April 2009

Family courts not open to bloggers

The Times has reported that accredited media will be able to attend all levels of family courts from April 27, but says the scheme is not open to bloggers, those who write occasional news-letters or to foreign media.
Legal commentator Joshua Rozenberg raised some very interesting points in the Daily Telegrapgh last December about the privileged access journalists would be given under plans to open up the family courts to "accredited" media.
He wrote: "It is fundamental to the Government’s proposals that the media should be given privileged access to the courts. As a journalist, I naturally welcome this. And it must be right to draw a distinction between the press and the public at large. Opening the family courts to everyone would put children and families at risk of being identified and stigmatised. It would not be possible to stop identifying information from being made public.
"But Mr Straw does not seem to have given enough thought to what constitutes the modern media. If I decide to write about legal affairs on my own website, am I a freelance journalist who should be allowed access to the courts or a blogger who should not? And who is to decide?"
Story tip via Adrian Monck's blog

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