Emergency Applications in Family Court: When and How to Use Them

Most family court cases take months. But sometimes months is time you do not have.

If your child has been taken by the other parent and you do not know where they are, you cannot wait for a hearing in eight weeks. If you are facing an imminent threat of violence and need a protection order today, you need the court to act now.

Family courts have the power to hear emergency applications, sometimes on the same day they are filed, and sometimes without the other party even being told the application has been made.

This guide explains when emergency applications are appropriate, what the court requires, and what happens after an emergency order is made.

What Is an Emergency Application?

An emergency application is a formal request to the court to act urgently, outside the normal listing process.

In most cases, emergency applications in children proceedings involve applying for an order without giving notice to the other party. This is called a without notice application, sometimes also referred to as an ex parte application.

Without notice means the other parent is not informed of the hearing before it takes place. The court hears from you alone. If the court makes an order, the other parent is then served with it and given the opportunity to come back to court to challenge it.

This is a significant departure from the normal principle that both parties should be heard before a court makes a decision. It is available only in limited circumstances.

When Are Without Notice Applications Justified?

The court will consider a without notice application where:

• There is a genuine emergency requiring immediate action. For example, a child has been removed from the jurisdiction, a parent is about to leave the country with the child, or a child is at immediate risk of significant harm.
• Giving notice to the other party would make the situation worse or defeat the purpose of the application.
• The matter cannot wait for an on-notice hearing, even an urgent one listed within a few days.

The court is not required to make a without notice order just because you have asked for one on an urgent basis. The judge will assess whether the circumstances genuinely justify proceeding without the other party's knowledge.

What Types of Orders Can Be Made on an Emergency Basis?

• Child arrangements orders on a without notice basis, in cases where a child has been wrongfully removed or is at risk of removal.
• Prohibited Steps Orders preventing a parent from removing a child from the jurisdiction, from a specific address, or from taking other specified action.
• Non-molestation orders and occupation orders in cases involving domestic abuse. These can be made extremely quickly, sometimes on the same day, and often without notice to the respondent.
• Recovery orders where a child has been unlawfully taken and their whereabouts may be known.

The Without Notice Hearing

If the court agrees to hear your application without notice, you attend the hearing alone. The other party is not present and is not informed until after the order is made.

At the hearing, you give evidence in support of your application. You must be completely honest with the court. You have what is called a duty of full and frank disclosure. That means you must tell the court everything relevant to the application, including anything that might support the other party's position, not just the things that support yours.

Failure to be fully frank with the court at a without notice hearing is taken very seriously. If it later emerges that you withheld relevant information, the court may discharge the order and may make costs orders against you.

What Happens After a Without Notice Order Is Made?

If the court makes a without notice order, the other party must be served with it as soon as possible. The order will include a return date, which is a hearing listed shortly after the without notice order is made, typically within a few days to two weeks, at which both parties attend.

At the return hearing, the other party has the opportunity to put their case. They can give evidence about why the order should not have been made, or why it should be varied or discharged.

The order remains in force until the return hearing, at which point the court decides whether to continue it, vary it, or bring it to an end.

Urgent Applications on Notice

Not every emergency requires a without notice application. Sometimes the appropriate response is to make an urgent application on notice, meaning the other party is informed, but the court lists the hearing quickly, within days rather than weeks.

Courts have the ability to list urgent hearings quickly where the circumstances justify it. If you need a hearing within a week, you should contact the court directly, explain the urgency, and ask for an expedited listing.

Domestic Abuse and Emergency Protection

Northern Ireland

What You Need to Prepare

If you believe you need an emergency application, you need to be ready to explain clearly to the court:

• What has happened, or what is about to happen, that makes this an emergency.
• Why it cannot wait for a normal listing.
• Why, if you are applying without notice, it is not appropriate to notify the other party.
• What order you are asking for.
• What evidence you have to support the application.

Time pressure is real. But a poorly prepared emergency application is worse than a short delay to prepare it properly. Judges are experienced at distinguishing between genuine emergencies and urgency that has been manufactured.

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