Carol Coulter has been granted a year's leave of absence by The Irish Timesto carry out research on family law.
The work, for which she was engaged by the Courts Service last October, involves a pilot project to provide family
law reports, judgments, trends and other statistical information to the judiciary, legal practitioners and the general public.
The project has been made possible because of the enactment of the 2004 Civil Liability and Courts Act which modified the in camera rule in family law cases to permit a number of categories of people - but not including journalists - to attend family law proceedings, subject to the approval of the Minister for Justice.
Regulations made on foot of the Act specified the categories of people permitted to attend these proceedings and included those appointed by the Courts Service to report on them.
The initial issue of Family Law Matters, published yesterday, represents the first tranche of Dr Coulter's reports for the Courts Service.