Valuing Care? 'Proper Provision' in the Court of Appeal

Private family law is not a significant element of the work of the appellate courts in Ireland. Most family disputes are resolved at first instance in the Circuit or District Courts. The small number of family issues reaching the Court of Appeal generally originate in the High Court as high-value divorce/judicial separation cases or applications under the Hague Child Abduction Convention. Convention cases concern the removal of children across national boundaries and result in technical and carefully reasoned judgments. Whilst clearly of grave consequence to the children and parents involved, inter-country childcare disputes are relatively rare. Marriage breakdown, in contrast, impacts significantly more families; between four and five thousand applications are made each year for divorce or judicial separation in the Circuit and High Courts.