ProfileJo was identified by 'Chambers and Partners Directory' in 2008 as being within the top 15 London Family Silks noted for ' being a challenging opponent and admired very much for it' and has consolidated her position in the 2009 Edition. Independent of her elevation to silk, Jo was identified as 'Leader at the Bar' in child care works. Peers commented that she is 'an exceptionally well prepared lawyer who is ready on paper to destroy your case' and who 'fights hard', yet always maintains her focus on the child'. Jo has been selected for inclusion in the 2008 edition of The Experts Directory as a leading family silk. Jo has carved out a reputation for enhanced client care, tactical and legal insight and tenacity deployed in the written and oral presentation of her clients case. Her 'eloquence' was singled out for mention by Lady Baroness Hale in the recent case of Re B ( Standard of Proof) in the House of Lords. The recent Legal 500, 2008 edition identifies Jo as a leading silk:
Jo Delahunty QC, who enters the table for the first time this year, is known for her child protection work. She was appeared in Haringey LBC v S, which concerned care arrangements for a child suspected to be under threat of assault, with allegations of wilful neglect in respect to ritual abuse. Jo has been recognised again in Chambers & Partners 2009 for her '"relaxed, straightforward and no-nonsense" attitude to her work and can often be seen acting in complex care proceedings.' Jo has particular expertise in legally significant and factually complex care proceedings with specific interest in cases involving - The death of / catastrophic injuries to a child
- Sex abuse/ incest and paedophilia (including internet and commercial exploitation)
- Ritualized abuse/ cultural practices,
- acting for children who are both the victims of abuse and alleged abusers
- Teenage mothers
- Parents with learning disabilities
- Child protection cases involving concurrent criminal prosecution for attempted murder/child cruelty and neglect/ sex offences/ terrorism.
- Complex private law proceedings and Adoption and Placement cases area natural corollary to her practice.
Jo has extensive experience acting for all protagonist in complex care cases and but is particularly highly regarded for her representation of children in situations where they are separately represented from their Guardians, e.g. acting for a child who is both subject victim and respondent abuser in sex abuse cases (and where the child potentially faces criminal prosecution) or acting for teenage mothers when they are both a subject child and teenage parent respondent.
Jo has a particular interest in post care services to children particularly where physical injuries/ emotional harm they have sustained require care plans that look to ' pathway plans ' and support and services as a vulnerable adult/ post 18 care.
Recent cases includeHOUSE OF LORDS CASE - CARE PROCEEDINGS - STANDARD OF PROOF - Re B (Standard of Proof) 2008 FLR 2 FLR 141 (HL)
CARE PROCEEDINGS - STANDARD OF PROOF - REVIEW OF RE H (Minors) (Sexual Abuse: Standard of Proof)1996] AC 563; Instructed by CAFCASS to intervene on behalf of the organization to argue against the appellants proposed 'real possibility 'test ; to support the retention of the civil standard of proof and to reject any presumption that the 'cogency principle' required a higher standard of proof than the balance of probabilities in serious cases . CAFCASS were successful on all points The House of Lords unanimously agreed with their submissions and adopted their wording in full as a suggested pro-forma draft letter of instruction to experts in cases where findings sought have not been made. The case is now the leading case on the standard of proof in Care proceedings.
Click here to read more A local Authority v J. (2008) EWCH 1484 ( fam) (2008) FLR ( forthcoming) Oct 2008 Fam Law 972
Hogg J: reported to demonstrate the difficulties of ,and sensitivity required when , seeking to balance the demands and merits of inter sibling and existing family bonds when they conflict with the need of a younger child to be placed for adoption.
Re N (7.9.2007 Charles J) High Court; acting for a father in care proceedings concurrently on trial at the Old Bailey for terrorist offences allegedly involving himself and his then 6 month old son and wife. Client acquitted of the most serious charges in the criminal courts ( as was mother) the care court then having to consider if it should trespass upon a criminal province ; effectively by retrying a police/ customs terrorism case based on alleged possession of plans/ instructions for bomb making equipment, death/ be heading videos and extreme religious tracts which the local authority argued established a risk of harm to the child based on the fathers alleged extreme political views. Outcome: Secured withdrawal of the proceedings, child returned to mother, no bar on parents reuniting upon the fathers release from prison on lesser charges Re F (2007) Acting directly on instructions of a 15 year old boy who was a sexual victim of extreme maternal and familial gang rape and buggery. As a result of his experiences he became a sexual abuser himself including violation of his youngest siblings ( aged 2 years up ) and had engaged in extreme acts of self genital mutilation being described as a 'seriously disturbed young man' The trial involved the exploration of a parenting history spanning 26 years including multi generational incest and inter sibling sex abuse (oldest perpetrator 72 (grandmother), youngest child (18 months old)) including repeated acts of violent sexual exploitation, buggery and gang rape and the most severe and extensive that the psychiatric experts had assessed in their combined experience. Jo was reported in 'Haringey LBC v S (2007) 1 FLR 387, Acting for 4 of 5 subject children with concurrent criminal proceedings for child cruelty and neglect following the reception into care of a child suspected to be under threat of assault and willful neglect in respect to ritual abuse. The case attracted some notoriety in the nationwide press as a result of the abuse inflicted upon the child under the guise of punishment/ banishment of evil spirits 'kndoki'. Related immigration issues/ Human Rights/ Child's Right to Family Life - adults with whom child placed to be deported to Angola, child had leave to remain in UK, child at risk of further accusations of witchcraft if returned to Angola with adults, comment on potential clash between Home Office decision to refuse leave to remain to adult carers with court view of child's welfare and risk of harm by deportation or separation from family members Jo was also reported in Re X: London Borough Council v Y and X (2006) 2 FLR 998 Munby J, under a care plan versus court clash. SkillsJo has an established practice in childcare matters and by those who instruct her, her strengths are considered to be: - a compassionate yet realistic approach to the difficulties inherent in cases involving a child's welfare and needs
- effective communication of the issues involved to the clients, both lay and professional
- pro-active client-care
- good negotiation skills
- assured presentation of the case in court by advocacy and written presentation
- underpinned by thorough preparation of the case and the law to be applied within it
- directed towards a clear analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of the brief.
Publications and teachingOver the course of her practice, Jo has written articles on child protection issues and lectured in training courses for barristers and solicitors in family law matters, principally care proceedings and the impact upon them of the Human Rights Act. Jo has delivered seminars on a range of subjects including 'The representation of children in public law proceedings, including Rule 9.5 appointments' and 'The issues that arise for children when care and criminal proceedings coincide.'
SocietiesFamily Law Bar Association, Association of Lawyers for Children, British Association of Adoption and Fostering, Association of Women Barristers, Child RIGHT , Amnesty
PersonalIn her 40's, married to her partner of 27 years, a commuter from deepest Kent, and an expert in time management given the task of combining a career at the Bar with three young children and two dogs - with the frown and laughter lines to prove it!
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