Rule 3A.1 InterpretationF1

In this Part—

• “child” means a person under the age of 18 years whether or not the child is the subject of the proceedings, except that—

  1. (a)

     in adoption proceedings, it also includes a person who is the subject of proceedings and has attained the age of 18 years before the proceedings are concluded; and

  2. (b)

     in proceedings brought under F2... the 1980 Hague Convention or the European Convention, it means a person under the age of 16 years who is the subject of proceedings;

• F3...

• “intermediary” means a person whose function is to—

  1. (a)

     communicate questions put to a witness or party;

  2. (b)

     communicate to any person asking such questions the answers given by the witness or party in reply to them; and

  3. (c)

     explain such questions or answers so far as is necessary to enable them to be understood by the witness or party or by the person asking such questions;

• “live link” means a live television link or other arrangement whereby a witness or party, while absent from the courtroom or other place where the proceedings are being held, is able to see and hear a person there and to be seen and heard by the judge, legal representatives acting in the proceedings and other persons appointed to assist a witness or party;

• “mental disorder” has the meaning given in section 1 of the Mental Health Act 1983;

• “participation direction” means—

  1. (a)

     a general case management direction made for the purpose of assisting a witness or party to give evidence or participate in proceedings; or

  2. (b)

     a direction that a witness or party should have the assistance of one or more of the measures in rule 3A.8; and

  references to “quality of evidence” are to its quality in terms of completeness, coherence and accuracy; and for this purpose “coherence” refers to a witness’s or a party’s ability in giving evidence to give answers which address the questions put to the witness or the party and which can be understood both individually and collectively.

• F4“relative” has the meaning given by section 63(1) of the 1996 Act;

• “victim” includes a child to whom F5section 3 of the Domestic Abuse Act 2021 applies; and