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First volume of case reports from the Family Law Reporting Project published by Minister Jim O’Callaghan
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The Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration, Jim O’Callaghan, has today (19 August 2026) published the first volume of case reports from the Family Law Reporting Project.
Led by Dr Carol Coulter, the Family Law Reporting Project aims to increase public understanding of family law proceedings by providing anonymised reports on a representative sample of family law cases, ensuring the privacy of families is upheld.
The first volume of case reports contains 103 anonymised reports from family law proceedings in the District, Circuit and High Court.
On the publication of the first volume of reports, Minister O’Callaghan said:
"The family law courts provide an essential service, and it is important that the public understands how they work, while protecting the privacy of those involved. Through the Family Justice Strategy, I am committed to promoting transparency and a greater understanding of the family justice system. We must increase awareness and understanding of family law proceedings to build public confidence and trust in the judicial determination of such disputes.
“The reports published today are an important step forward, providing valuable insight into family law cases in an anonymised way. I want to thank Dr Carol Coulter for her leadership of this important project.”
Dr Carol Coulter, the director of the Family Law Reporting Project said:
“Decisions made in family law cases can have a profound and life-long impact, particularly on children. Yet what happens in the family law courts is largely unknown, and what does get into the public domain usually relates to high conflict cases. I hope that the Family Law Reporting Project will bring transparency to these courts and also help dispel the fears and misapprehensions many people have, as well as informing a discussion on what further reforms of the family law system may be needed.
“The reports published today range from domestic violence applications in the District Court to financial disputes subject to appeal in the High Court. They demonstrate the workings of the family law courts across a range of issues, and also show that in many cases conflicts are resolved and agreements reached.”
The Family Law Reporting Project was commissioned by Minister O’Callaghan under the Family Justice Strategy. Previously, there was no comprehensive system in Ireland for regularly and systematically reporting on private family law proceedings. Establishing the Family Law Reporting Project is a significant step in addressing this gap and improving public understanding of the family justice system, while ensuring the privacy of families is upheld.
The case reports can be found here: https://www.gov.ie/familylawreportingproject
ENDS …///
Notes to Editor
- The Family Justice Strategy 2022-2025 focuses on developing better ways to manage, collect and share information within the family justice system to enable better case management, statistical reporting and evidence-based decision-making, while simultaneously maintaining privacy and dignity for children and parents. One of the actions under this goal was to examine the feasibility of establishing a family law case reporting system.
- As part of that commitment, the Minister commissioned the Child Law Project, led by Dr Carol Coulter, to deliver the Private Family Law Reporting Project.
- The Project, which is independent in its function, will be delivered over three years and will attend a representative sample of cases across different jurisdictions and geographical areas, reflecting the breadth of family law cases, jurisdictional issues, and urban and rural areas. Through this work, the project aims to increase public understanding of family law proceedings; promote transparency while protecting families’ privacy; support evidence-based policymaking; and enhance confidence and trust in the family justice system.
- The first volume of case reports, published today, contains 103 anonymised reports from family law proceedings observed by project reporters in the District, Circuit and High Court. The reports are organised by court jurisdiction and type of application and provide insight into the types of cases coming before the family courts, while ensuring the privacy of families is upheld.
- Due consideration should be given to the Project’s structured methodology of observing a broadly representative sample of cases based on region, jurisdiction, and type of application, when making inferences about the wider system based on the case reports.
- In addition to publishing case reports, the Family Law Reporting Project will also prepare annual thematic reports which will identify key themes and trends emerging from these case reports reported on across the court jurisdictions.