The BBC & Ors v Marten & Ors (Publicity Application)

The BBC & Ors v Marten & Ors (Publicity Application)

The compelling public interest in publication of the family court judgments, to enable public understanding and correct misinformation, outweighs privacy and confidentiality concerns, given the extensive publicity already in the public domain. Judgments will be published with redactions to protect the children's identities, but not the names of local authorities or professionals except where necessary to prevent jigsaw identification. Adoption judgments will not be published due to heightened risk of identification and harm to the children. Publication will occur after discharge of the s4(2) order in the criminal proceedings.

Parties
Applicant: BBC; Applicant: Telegraph Media Group Ltd; Applicant: Times Media Ltd; Applicant: Associated Newspapers Ltd; Respondent: Local Authority; Respondent: Ms Marten; Respondent: Mr Gordon; Interested Party: Children (unnamed); Interested Party: Crown Prosecution Service
Jurisdiction
England and Wales
Judgment Date
14 July 2025
Procedural Posture
Publicity Application (family Court) / Judgment on Application for Publication of Family Court Judgments
Outcome
Application granted in part; family court judgments to be published with specified redactions after discharge of s4(2) order in criminal proceedings.
Legal Topics
Publication of Judgments, Anonymity and Redaction, Open Justice, Reporting Restrictions, Balancing Article 8 and Article 10 Rights, Adoption Proceedings, Disclosure to Media
Family Law Media Law Human Rights Law Publication of Judgments Anonymity and Redaction Open Justice Reporting Restrictions Balancing Article 8 and Article 10 Rights +2 more

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Parties

BBC

Applicant

Telegraph Media Group Ltd

Applicant

Times Media Ltd

Applicant

Associated Newspapers Ltd

Applicant

Local Authority

Respondent

Ms Marten

Respondent

Mr Gordon

Respondent

Children (unnamed)

Interested Party

Crown Prosecution Service

Interested Party

Procedural Posture

Publicity Application (family Court) / Judgment on Application for Publication of Family Court Judgments

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Should family court judgments concerning the children of Ms Marten and Mr Gordon be published, and if so, with what redactions?
  2. 2 How should the court balance Article 8 (privacy) and Article 10 (freedom of expression) rights in this context?
  3. 3 Should the names of local authorities, social workers, and other professionals be redacted?

Ratio Decidendi

The compelling public interest in publication of the family court judgments, to enable public understanding and correct misinformation, outweighs privacy and confidentiality concerns, given the extensive publicity already in the public domain. Judgments will be published with redactions to protect the children's identities, but not the names of local authorities or professionals except where necessary to prevent jigsaw identification. Adoption judgments will not be published due to heightened risk of identification and harm to the children. Publication will occur after discharge of the s4(2) order in the criminal proceedings.

Court Disposition

Application granted in part; family court judgments to be published with specified redactions after discharge of s4(2) order in criminal proceedings.

Orders

  • Judgments dated 20 July 2018, 23 February 2021, 28 January 2022 (with redactions), 20 January 2023, 8 September 2023, 5 December 2023, and this judgment to be published on The National Archives after discharge of s4(2) order.
  • Adoption judgments post-January 2022 not to be published.