Dear Mr McCloy

Freedom of Information Act 2000

Thank you for your e-mail dated 1 February 2010 requesting information relating to past, current and future projects / consultations that are being carried out by the Department in regard to family law and your further e-mail which the Department received on 5 February 2010 clarifying that you were requesting information regarding projects /research on family law reform, Childrens Order 1995, child contact cases - private and public law and

child residence cases - private law.

I will deal with the requests made in the e-mails under the terms of the above legislation and I will be answering on behalf of Department of Finance and Personnel.

The leaflet enclosed tells you about the legislation and the procedures I will follow in handling your request.

In some circumstances a fee may be payable but if that is the case I will let you know the likely charges before proceeding.

If you have any queries about this letter, please contact me. Please remember to quote the reference number above in any future communications.

Yours faithfully,

Declan Leonard

DECLAN LEONARD

INFORMATION MANAGER

Enc.

Department of Finance and Personnel

Public Information Leaflet

on

The Freedom of Information Act 2000

Note: This guide is an overview of some of the main provisions of the Act and should not be regarded as a legal interpretation.

1. What does the Freedom of Information Act do?

The Freedom of Information (FOI) Act 2000 gives everyone the right to request information from public authorities. The FOI Act means that, from 1^st January 2005, you can get information to help you to understand better how this Department works, how we spend public money, and how and why we make our decisions.

2. You can also get information under:

3. How do I get information about the Department under the FOI Act?

If you have access to the Internet you can get information on the Departmental website at www.dfpni.gov.uk; or visit www.onlineni.net for further information on accessing the websites of all Northern Ireland Government Departments. Alternatively you can write to us at the address on the letter accompanying this leaflet.

4. How long does it take to get information?

In most cases the Department must respond to your request within 20 working days of receiving it and, if it cannot, it will explain why and let you know when you will receive a reply. The timescales can be extended where:

Sometimes we might need to contact you in order to clarify exactly what information you are interested in. It will help us to process your request more quickly if you can be as specific as possible about what information it is you want. Please make sure that you provide us with your name and address and a contact telephone number.

5. Is there a cost for getting information?

This depends on a number of factors including the volume of material requested. Responses to enquiries that cost the Department less than £600 to process¹ will normally be provided free of charge, although there may be a small charge for the costs of photocopying, printing and postage. The Department has the right to refuse to respond to a request

that is estimated to cost more than £600 to process unless the request

is for information covered by EIRs, in which case the Department has to

process the request if you are prepared to pay the costs. If the cost is

greater than £600 and you agree to pay these costs the Department will

normally provide you with the information once the fee has been paid.

6. What happens if the information I want is not available?

The FOI Act does not require us to gather information that is not already there. But we are required to assist you with your request. We will contact you and tell you what information we do hold that might help to answer your query or suggest another public authority who may hold the information you are looking for.

7. Can I have any information at all?

The FOI Act allows you access to almost all information that a public body holds. But there are some things that cannot be given to the public. For example, information about national security, law enforcement or personal information - you can obtain your own personal information through the DPA (see paragraph 2). Personal information supplied by, or in relation to, third parties may be available in certain circumstances. The Department is not obliged to send you information that is already available elsewhere (e.g. in our publication scheme at