Rose Conway-Walsh: Family Courts Are Failing Children
Rose Conway-Walsh today accused the family law system of actively failing and endangering children, urging urgent reform of court practices, expert oversight and transparency. Speaking after a motion from Paul Gogarty and the Independent Technical Group, she called on the Minister to move faster on regulation and minimum standards.
Rose Conway-Walsh sets out a stark critique of family law practice: children are being put in harm's way, domestic violence is ignored, and repeated contact with abusers is being forced. She described reports from the family law courts as "horror stories" and said the system operates largely out of sight.
Conway-Walsh warned that experts used in family law cases work without oversight, accountability or transparency. She urged that the use of experts be governed by regulation rather than guidelines, and that minimum standards of training be introduced across professionals, as referenced in the government's family justice strategy 2022-2025.
The deputy highlighted the problem of in-camera hearings and limited reporting, arguing this secrecy prevents public scrutiny and undermines justice. She pressed the Minister to accelerate reform and criticized successive ministers for the slow pace of change.
Conway-Walsh asked what explanation legislators will give to the children harmed by the system when they ask why intervention did not happen. Her speech calls for immediate statutory standards, clearer oversight, and urgent action by the Minister to protect victims and restore confidence in family justice.
Main accusations
Rose Conway-Walsh sets out a stark critique of family law practice: children are being put in harm's way, domestic violence is ignored, and repeated contact with abusers is being forced. She described reports from the family law courts as "horror stories" and said the system operates largely out of sight.
Concerns about experts and oversight
Conway-Walsh warned that experts used in family law cases work without oversight, accountability or transparency. She urged that the use of experts be governed by regulation rather than guidelines, and that minimum standards of training be introduced across professionals, as referenced in the government's family justice strategy 2022-2025.
Transparency and public scrutiny
The deputy highlighted the problem of in-camera hearings and limited reporting, arguing this secrecy prevents public scrutiny and undermines justice. She pressed the Minister to accelerate reform and criticized successive ministers for the slow pace of change.
Consequences and demands
Conway-Walsh asked what explanation legislators will give to the children harmed by the system when they ask why intervention did not happen. Her speech calls for immediate statutory standards, clearer oversight, and urgent action by the Minister to protect victims and restore confidence in family justice.
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Transcript
Go raibh maith agat. I want to thank Paul Gogarty and the Independent Technical Group for bringing forward this important motion. Minister, family law is not working to protect the children of this state. Children are not only failed by family law, they are all too often put in harm's way and that means that the state is facilitating harm to children. The system is massively skewed against women and children but I acknowledge that it impacts men as well. It ignores domestic violence, it threatens to kill and forces children to continuously meet those who have already abused them. I have case after case after case, Minister, where this is happening and this has happened for years. I'm glad that you're the Minister who I believe is facing up to this but we need to do this much quicker than it's been done and it really says an awful lot for the Ministers that have come before you. The experts making these decisions work without oversight and without accountability. No transparency, no scrutiny. The horror stories coming out from the family law courts can only be described as state-sponsored cruelty. What are we going to tell, Minister, these children when as adults they raise the questions of why did we as legislators not intervene to stop the harm that was being done to them? Are we going to tell them it was too complex? The use of experts in family law cases need to be dealt with by regulation rather than by guidelines given the serious concerns that have arisen to date and the need to ensure the highest standards in terms of how the justice system works. Minimum standards of training are required for those who work in the area of family law as recognized within the government's family justice strategy 22 to 25. It's now 2026 and such standards are overdue to be introduced across all professionals, including legal professionals and civil and public servants operating in this area. Minister, I do acknowledge your intent but the lack of transparency is striking. By excluding the public and limiting reporting with the in-camera room, we have created a system that operates largely out of sight. Justice, as we know, must not only be done but it must be seen to be done.