Disastrous transfers of residence
15 June 2007
Judges: Mark Hedley and Nicholas Wilson
Expert: Dr Anderson - who I think is this Dr Ian Anderson, who is registered with the British Psychological Society and the Health and Care Professions Council.
A disastrous transfer of residence from mother to father was reversed.
A genealogy of hostility: parental alienation in England and Wales, Adrienne Barnett, January 2020:
“PA was accepted in Re A (a Child) [2007] EWCA Civ 899, principally because a ‘credible’ expert, Dr Anderson, raised it as ‘likely’ to happen in the future. This was an unsuccessful appeal by a mother against a transfer of residence to the father. There are indications of unresolved allegations of domestic abuse in the judgment. Brissenden (2010) reports that the child was so unhappy living with the father that he became suicidal. He was returned to his mother, having been ‘irreparably harmed’ by the move.”
Case examined by Claire Brissenden in Family Law Week in 2010, in the context of reporting on [2010] EWCA Civ 219, which used parental alienation expert, Kirk Weir, and which, she observed, bore “striking similarities”.
4 January 2010
Judge: Clifford Bellamy
Expert witness: “Dr W” - Kirk Weir - this is confirmed in subsequent judgments.
The parents had separated before the boy was born and was now eleven. Justice Bellamy ordered a transfer of residence from the mother to the father on the grounds of parental alienation.
The case is analysed by Ruth Cain in The Court of Motherhood: Affect, Alienation and Redefinitions of Responsible Parenting, 2011
[2010] EWCA Civ 219 - 21 January 2010 - is the mother’s appeal against the transfer of residence being refused. Reported in Family Law Week. Summarised by mckenziefriendfamilylaw.com. Judges: Thorpe, Wall, Rimer
Then this is definitely the follow on, with Clifford Bellamy and Kirk Weir, discussing the American parental alienation “Family Bridges” reunification method of Richard Warshak.
The case is mentioned in 'The Court of Motherhood: Affect, Alienation and Redefinitions of Responsible Parenting’ by Ruth Cain, 2011
The case is appealed in:
[2010] EWHC B2 (Fam) on 3 March 2010
Judges: Wilson and Henderson
Barrister for father: Robin Tolson
Reported by Jonathan Petre in the Daily Mail. This article features on page 276 of Mothers On Trial by Phyllis Chesler.
And then in:
[2010] EWCA Civ 325. Judges: Thorpe, Smith, Baron
17 March 2010
Court of appeal - previously Clifford Bellamy
Expert: Kirk Weir
[2010] EWHC B19 (Fam) on 11 August 2010
Mark Berelowitz, Karen Woodall
30 July 2014
Judges: Ernest Ryder, Geoffrey Vos, David Richards
Unnamed male expert.
14 year old forcibly removed from mother to father, and 11 year old forcibly removed from mother into foster care on the order of HHJ Marshall, Designated Family Judge in Swindon.
A (Children: Parental alienation) [2019] EWFC B56
24 September 2019
Judge: Stephen Wildblood
Experts: Mark Berelowitz, Karen Woodall
Family Law Hub: “HHJ Wildblood QC decided that this heavily anonymised judgment should be released for publication, because it was in the public's interest to see badly wrong things could go in cases of parental alienation. There had been a failure here to identify the problem before the damage was done, and early intervention was essential. Indirect contact was of limited use in such cases. The extent of the children's alienation from the father had been underestimated, and now, following a failed transfer of residence, he had no contact with them at all, and had withdrawn proceedings to prevent further distress. In this hearing HHJ Wildblood QC gave the local authority permission to withdraw their public law proceedings.”
A and B (Parental Alienation: No.1, No.2, No.3 and No.4)
15 July 2022
Judge: Michael Keehan
Experts: Karen Woodall and Janine Braier
8 August 2022
Judge: Nathalie Lieven
Expert: Trish Barry-Relph
Barrister for father: Sarah Tyler of Coram Chambers instructed by Venters Solicitors.
Warwickshire County Council and HHJ Watson agreed with the father that this was a case of parental alienation and a transfer of residence was ordered. Independent social worker and parental alienation expert, Trish Barry-Relph, was instructed to carry out a Therapeutic Residential Reunification Plan. The children ran away from home. Z was placed with a foster carer and became suicidal. The guardian agreed she was competent to instruct her own legal representation. Judge Lieven ordered that Z should be allowed to return to live with her mother.
Reported by Julie Doughty at the Transparency Project.
2 March 2023
Judge: Nathalie Lieven
Psychologist: Dr (Gemma?) Parker
“There were many stages of the evidence when I felt that the Mother was being judged by unfair and unrealistic standards… Some of the criticism of the Mother’s conduct was not merely unfair it bordered on the inhumane. The Mother was denied any contact with her children between March and July 2022. When she was told in June that X was at the school fence very much wanting to see her mother she went and gave X a hug. She was criticised in cross examination for acting inappropriately by breaking “the rules”. I consider that the Mother acted as any loving parent in her situation would have done. Somewhere in the history of this case we have lost our humanity.”
Mum’s heartbreak: I can’t believe my beautiful Sara is dead… she was an amazing child, says heartbroken mum of girl, 10, murdered at home, The Sun, 14 August 2023
Sara Sherif was removed from her mother to live with her father in 2019. She was allowed to see her mother only twice in four years.