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In rare and exceptional cases, family courts have to intervene to protect the welfare of children even before they are brought into the world. A judge did just that in the case of a baby boy who was at high risk of being born HIV positive. The boy's mother, who was 37 weeks pregnant with him, was infected with the virus during her childhood. She declined anti-retroviral treatment during her pregnancy in the firm belief that he would escape infection and that such treatment would not be good for him....

Plans have recently been announced to shake up the family justice system by making mediation compulsory for separating couples.  Rather than have a judge decide how much time a child will spend with each parent and/or how to split assets, mediation is a process in which couples work together to agree their differences with the help of a trained and accredited family mediator.  This new proposal aims to protect thousands of families from the trauma and expense of lengthy court proceedings, which can be particularly damaging to any children...

To make a valid will, you need a certain level of mental capacity. However, as a High Court ruling showed, a flawless memory is not required and those suffering from mild cognitive impairment may not be disqualified from expressing their wishes. The case concerned a woman who was suffering from advanced vascular dementia when she died at the age of 90. She had, six years previously, made a will by which she left her entire estate to her son and only child. He died before her, however, so that, under the...

So-called 'cowboy' builders who demand overpayment for delayed and shoddy work are a curse on householders. However, as a Court of Appeal ruling showed, the law takes a tough line with dishonest tradespeople. The case concerned a builder's work for four clients, performed at a cost of almost £35,000. In each case, he presented himself as a solvent and stable businessman although that was far from being the case. The clients complained that his faulty work was long delayed and left incomplete. One client received an electric shock each time she...