In court proceedings all witnesses are asked to swear an oath or affirm that they will tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth. Before you go to court it will be helpful to find out why you are being called to give evidence if it is not obvious. For example, in disputes between parents, teachers may be being asked to give evidence to show that a child is undisturbed by contact with one of the parents or conversely upset and badly behaved after contact. In a care case, a teacher might be asked to describe a child’s behaviour, how they are usually dressed or what they have said about the way they are treated at home. A witness who is not a party will not be represented by a lawyer ( unless they are what is called an intervenor – see the section ….). A non-party witness will usually be called (asked to come to court) by one side or the other. A witness can be made to come to court by an order and may be required by the court to bring particular documents with them. The lawyer representing the person who wants the witness to give evidence will probably explain to the witness outside court a little about what the case is about and why their evidence might be relevant. The witness’s duty is not, however, to win the case for one side or another but to tell the truth as they know it. No lawyer is allowed to tell the witness how to give their evidence: coaching the witness is not allowed in the UK. There is nothing wrong with telling the witness whether their evidence is mainly agreed and if not, which particular matters are likely to be in dispute.
Before going into court make sure you have read through any witness statement you have made and any notes you have made for yourself. You will usually be asked to confirm that the statement was made and signed by you and that it is true to the best of your knowledge and belief. You should tell the court if there are any mistakes in the statement or anything important you want to add. While you are giving your evidence you may want to refer to your own personal notes that you made at the time you are being asked to talk about. The court will usually let you do this, although they may want to know when you prepared them and insist that the originals are shown to all the parties.
You may be asked questions by a number of different lawyers. You will give your version of events first in answer to questions from the lawyer acting for the person who asked you to come to court. After that comes the cross-examination. You may be asked questions to clarify how much you could see of an incident or to test out the accuracy of your memory of an event or to challenge your evidence. This type of questioning may feel quite hostile. On the other hand you may be asked questions designed to get you to say something positive in someone’s favour. You may also be asked question by the court. Finally the lawyer who started the questions off can ask some further questions to clear up any misunderstandings that may have arisen or to get you to emphasise a point. When you have finished your evidence the court will usually let you know that you can leave. You may not do so until you have formally been given permission. If your evidence is interrupted by a break for lunch or overnight you may not discuss your evidence with anyone during the interruption. This can be very frustrating but it is an important rule designed to stop lawyers and others from trying to improve on the evidence or tell a witness what to say. The court will usually remind you about this when they send you away.
Cases under the Children Act 1989 are entirely confidential and generally you should not discuss what went on in court with anyone. MORE
It helps to get to court a bit early so that you can ask any questions you want to, for example, what do I call the tribunal, where do I stand, what is the procedure and so on. It will also give you time to find the toilet and the nearest source of coffee. There is almost always a lot of waiting around so bring something to do while you are waiting. If you have any time constraints such as you need to get back to pick up children or attend a meeting make sure you let the lawyers and the court know immediately so that they can get you in and out as fast as possible.