Latest statistics provide some good news for Family Court users
The Ministry of Justice has published its latest quarterly statistics for the work of the Family Court, for the period January to March 2026.
As usual, the statistics paint a mixed picture, but there is at least some good news for Family Court users.
The statistics show that more new cases were started in the family courts than in the equivalent quarter of 2025, and also that the courts disposed of more cases than in the equivalent quarter of 2025.
In January to March 2026, 71,259 new cases started in family courts, an increase of 3% on the equivalent quarter in 2025. This was due to increases in most case types: private law children (16%), financial remedy (11%), public law children (5%) and domestic abuse (4%) cases. However, there was a decrease in adoption (7%) and divorce (5%) case starts.
As to case disposals, there were 63,668 in January to March 2026, an increase of 10% on the equivalent quarter of 2025. This was due to increases in domestic abuse (29%), divorce (24%) and financial remedy (13%) cases. However, there was a decrease in private law children (17%), adoption (6%) and public law children (5%) case disposals.
All of which suggests that whilst the courts have been busier, they have also been more efficient at disposing of cases. However, it is, of course impossible to equate different case types, which impose quite different burdens on the courts.
It is also concerning that fewer children cases have been disposed of.
This appears to have contributed to an increase in the number of open private law children cases (i.e. mostly cases between parents concerning arrangements for their children). The number of cases that are actually currently being dealt with is of course the real metric of how busy the courts are, and it is very welcome that this has been included in the statistics for the first time (at least in respect of private law children cases).
The figures show that there were 40,971 total open private law cases at the end of March 2026. This is up from 36,939 at the end of March 2025, a rise of 11%.
The good news concerns the time that cases are taking to be dealt with, something that is obviously very important to court users. Both divorce cases and private law children cases showed an improvement.
As to divorce cases, the mean average time from the date of the application to the conditional divorce order was 39 weeks, a decrease of 3 weeks from the same period in 2025, and the mean average time from application to final divorce order was 67 weeks, which was down 7 weeks from the equivalent quarter in 2025.
Turning to private law children cases, in January to March 2026, it took on average 35 weeks for such cases to be disposed of, a decrease of 5 weeks from the same period in 2025.
Unfortunately, the statistics do not include figures for the length of time that financial remedy cases have been taking.
You can find the latest Family Court Statistics Quarterly here.
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