Sir Declan Morgan

The review was set up by the Lord Chief Justice of Northern Ireland, Sir Declan Morgan, at the start of the legal year.

The interim report has been published so that interested parties and the public can submit feedback before the final report is produced.

Its key recommendation is the creation of a single family court to replace the Family Proceedings Court and Family Care Centre, with the High Court preserved for the most complex or sensitive cases.

It also recommends the creation of a Family Justice Board, replacing the Children’s Order Advisory Committee.

Other recommendations include a “fresh culture of problem solving courts” as well as wider use of new technology like paperless courts, virtual reality courts and online dispute resolution.

Lord Justice Gillen, the most senior Court of Appeal judge, is leading the ongoing review.

Following the interim report’s publication, Lord Gillen said: “The family courts make extremely important decisions about people’s lives, including some of the most vulnerable in our society, on a daily basis.

“For that reason, this Review has placed a premium on public involvement from the outset.

“In many ways the public input has been the beating heart of this Review and I look forward enormously to further public contributions.”

Views on the interim report are welcomed until 28 October 2016.