There is still no white paper for the second part of the Family Court reform.

The reform that entered into force on 1 October 2026 is, by the Government's own description, the first phase. We found no white paper for a second one.

The first phase was carried out through Act VII of 2026, which amended the Civil Code, the Code of Organization and Civil Procedure and the Criminal Code, and through regulations published on 11 August 2026. It set up the Family Court as a separate court with its own presiding judge, rather than a section of the Civil Court. Mediation stays compulsory before a separation, divorce or case involving children, but is now capped at six sessions over eight months, extendable by four months. The Court can appoint a Children's Advocate and support persons, suspend mediation and order protection where domestic violence is alleged, and act against false allegations or manipulation of the process, including what is described as parental alienation. Access is treated as an obligation on both parents, and maintenance can be collected directly from wages or by standing order. The details of mediation, appointments and enforcement are as described by the Government and its media; the legal text is the reference for each.

The reform in force is the first phase

The Government's consultation document of September 2024 was titled "The First Phase of the Reform in the Family Courts". Its foreword says that this first phase, once implemented, "will give us the opportunity to continue looking at further reforms, including the establishment of a dedicated Family Court rather than just a section within the Civil Court". The legislative package came into force on 1 October 2026.

The minister spoke of a second phase, without setting it out

Presenting the bill in February 2026, Justice Minister Jonathan Attard said the reform rested on two pieces of legislation: a bill amending the Civil Code, the Code of Organization and Civil Procedure and the Criminal Code, and a complete overhaul of the subsidiary legislation, which would be repealed and replaced. "For the first time we will be establishing a specialised Family Court," he said. "At present it is a section within the Civil Court, but in line with the move towards specialisation we will go towards a distinct Court, one that will not only have trained and specialised judges but will be complemented by an administrative structure." He described this step as one that "paves the way for the second phase of the Family Court reform", which he linked to the court moving into a new, modern building.

He gave no further detail of what the second phase would contain or when it would come. We found no consultation document, white paper or draft bill for it on the Ministry for Justice's website, in the Government's public consultation listings we could access, or in news coverage up to October 2026.

Evaluation

What Bartolo said holds. The Government calls the reform in force a first phase, and the minister himself has referred to a second one, but no white paper or consultation document setting out what it contains has been published.

His conclusion, that the second part cannot yet be judged, is an opinion and was not rated. It applies to the second phase only: the first phase is now law and can be assessed against its text.