Terms used in Court

There are many terms that are used in court that can be confusing to a novice. Here are some of them:


 * FHDRA - First Hearing Dispute Resolution Appointment
 * FDA - First Directions Appointent
 * FDR - First Directions Hearing
 * AR - Ancillary Relief - The process of dividing the family pot between the parties. Can last several (many) court hearings over some considerable time. The division balance often depends on the residence of the children, hence the slogan: "Money always follows the children", ie. the party with residence of the children ends up with the lion share of the pot.


 * LIP, Litigant in Person - someone who is representing themselves in court, ie without a solicitor or barrister. Possibly (and desirably) with a McKenzie Friends


 * Schedule of Findings (or more accurately A Schedule of Proposed Findings) - A schedule prepared by the local authority which sets out findings of fact about how the threshold criteria are met for the court to make a care or a supervision order.


 * Scott Schedule - a list of allegations, made by one or both parties to private or public family law procedings, that are to be the subject to a Finding of Fact hearing. After the FOF has finished the Judge releases a Judgement which determines which allegations are true and which are false.


 * Finding of Fact (Fact Finding) - a hearing in which claims/allegations of either side against the other are weighed in court, evidence is brought in to substantiate or otherwise those claims/allegations, at the end of which the judge either finds in favour, or dismisses all, or part of the claims. The hearing process can take hours, a full day, or several days in court.