June Venters KC and Rachel Temple successful in landmark High Court case for father facing domestic abuse allegations

11th December 2025

3PB family law silk June Venters KCJune Venters KCCall: 2017Silk: 2006, leading 3PB family barrister Rachel TempleRachel TempleCall: 2004 (pictured here, left to right), successfully acted for the father in the High Court case of  Re E (A Child) (Complex Fact-Finding: Allegations of Domestic Abuse and Alienating Behaviours) [2025] EWFC 422. This is the accompanying case to that reported earlier in the Court of Appeal of The Father, Mother, E a child (by his Children’s Guardian) and Aimee Dover Case No: CA-2025-001859, which clarified the scope of judicial criticism against any individual witness, whether a lay person or a professional, within family court proceedings.

The judgement in this High Court case sets out the findings sought by both parents. In summary, the mother alleged physical, emotional and sexual abuse of herself, emotional abuse of the children, and sexual abuse of one child. The father alleged that the mother had engaged in acts that alienated the children from him. The Court found in favour of the father. This case powerfully illustrates just how fathers can be and indeed are the victims of domestic abuse and that abuse perpetrated by a mother against a father is as pervasive and damaging as abuse from a father, the more so where there is a lack of professional curiosity to understand what is actually happening within a family, rather than falling back on well-rehearsed stereotypes about the nature of abuse and the gender of perpetrators.

June Venters KC and Rachel Temple, who represented the father in this case, said: "This case stands out as a powerful reminder of why courts must investigate thoroughly, why assumptions about perpetrators of domestic abuse can never be taken at face value, and why legal representation remains vital. It highlights the human cost when these safeguards are absent, and the value when they are upheld."

To read the briefing document on the case, "Recognising the Father as the Victim in Domestic Abuse Cases," produced by June and Rachel, please click here.

To contact June or Rachel, please email their clerks Rob Leonard or Jess Street on [email protected] or [email protected] or by calling them on 01202 292102 or 0117 928 1520 respectively.