Form D5 UK: Notice Indorsed on Papers Served Under Rule 6.14

At a glance

• What it is: the notice indorsed on a family court document under rule 6.14(7)(a) of the Family Procedure Rules 2010, whenever service is made on behalf of a child or protected party rather than on them directly.
• Where the rule sits: Part 6, Chapter 2 — service of an application for a matrimonial or civil partnership order. Rule 6.28, in Chapter 3, extends the same who-must-be-served provisions to other family application forms.
• Who must actually be served — child respondent: one of the child's parents or guardians, or, failing that, an adult the child lives with or is cared for by (rule 6.14(1)).
• Who must actually be served — protected party respondent: the attorney under a registered enduring power of attorney, the donee of a lasting power of attorney, the deputy appointed by the Court of Protection, or, failing all of those, an adult the protected party lives with or is cared for by (rule 6.14(2)).
• Companion document: a witness statement under rule 6.14(7)(b) confirming whether the contents or purpose of the application were communicated to the child or protected party — unless the Official Solicitor is already acting as litigation friend or children's guardian (rule 6.14(8)).
• Cost: Form D5 is free from GOV.UK and is not separately filed or fee-paid; the underlying application carries whatever court fee applies to that type of proceedings.

What Form D5 is, and why it exists

When a family court application names a child, or an adult who lacks the mental capacity to conduct their own case, as the respondent, the rules do not let you serve that person directly. Instead, service is redirected to someone who can reasonably be expected to look after that person's interests — a parent, guardian or carer for a child, or an attorney, deputy or carer for a protected party.

Because the person actually served is not the respondent themselves, the rules build in a safeguard: the document has to carry a clear, standard-form notice explaining that its contents need to be communicated to the real respondent, if that is appropriate and not harmful to do. That notice is Form D5. Its wording is fixed by Practice Direction 6A, and it must appear on (or be attached to) the document at the point of service, not added afterwards.

When rule 6.14 applies — and a common misconception

Rule 6.14 of the Family Procedure Rules 2010 sits in Part 6, Chapter 2, which is headed "Service of the application for a matrimonial order or civil partnership order in the jurisdiction". Read in isolation, that placement makes it look like Form D5 only concerns divorce and dissolution applications where the respondent is a child or protected party.

In practice it is wider than that. Rule 6.28, in Chapter 3 ("Service of documents other than an application for a matrimonial order or civil partnership order"), expressly applies rule 6.14(1) and (2) — the provisions setting out who must be served — to application forms commencing any other kind of family proceedings, again wherever the respondent is a child or protected party. That covers, for example, applications under the Children Act 1989 or financial remedy applications where the named respondent cannot be served directly. Practice Direction 6A confirms that a document served under rule 6.14(7) in these cases must carry the same indorsed notice set out in Form D5.

So the practical rule of thumb is this: if you are serving a family court application form and the respondent is a child, or an adult who lacks capacity to conduct the proceedings, Form D5 is very likely to be relevant — whatever type of family proceedings you are dealing with.

Who must be served — the detail

Where the respondent is a child (rule 6.14(1)), the application must be served on one of the child's parents or guardians. If there is no parent or guardian available, it goes to an adult with whom the child resides or in whose care the child is.

Where the respondent is a protected party (rule 6.14(2)) — someone who lacks capacity within the meaning of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 to conduct the proceedings — service must go to whichever of the following exists, in order: the attorney under a registered enduring power of attorney, the donee of a lasting power of attorney, or the deputy appointed by the Court of Protection. If none of those exists, service falls to an adult with whom the protected party resides or in whose care they are.

The court also has flexibility here. Under rule 6.14(4), the court may permit service on the child or protected party directly, or on someone other than the person listed above, if that is appropriate. Under rule 6.14(6), the court may also retrospectively treat a document that was sent to the wrong person as if it had been properly served. Neither of these is something you should assume applies to your situation without asking the court — treat rule 6.14(1) and (2) as the default position unless a court order says otherwise.

The witness statement that goes alongside Form D5

Indorsing the document with the Form D5 notice is only half of what rule 6.14(7) requires. Under rule 6.14(7)(b), the person commencing the proceedings must also file a witness statement — from the person who was actually served — confirming whether the contents of the application form, or its purpose and intention, were communicated to the child or protected party, and if not, explaining why not.

This requirement is dropped only in one circumstance: rule 6.14(8) says it does not apply where the Official Solicitor is acting, as the case may be, as the litigation friend of the protected party or as the litigation friend or children's guardian of the child. In every other case, the witness statement is not optional — it is the mechanism by which the court checks that the safeguard behind Form D5 has actually worked, not just been paid lip service to.

How to use Form D5 in practice

1. Confirm rule 6.14 actually applies. Check that the respondent is genuinely a child, or a protected party who lacks capacity within the meaning of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 to conduct the proceedings. If the respondent is a capable adult, rule 6.14 and Form D5 do not apply — serve them under the ordinary rules instead.
2. Identify the correct person to serve. Work through rule 6.14(1) or (2) in order — do not default to "whoever is easiest to reach" without checking the hierarchy the rule sets out.
3. Get the current version of Form D5 from GOV.UK. Download it fresh rather than reusing an old copy, since HMCTS forms are periodically updated.
4. Indorse the notice on the document being served, not on a separate covering letter. The wording is fixed by Practice Direction 6A and should not be altered.
5. Serve using a permitted method under Part 6 of the Family Procedure Rules — personal service, post, document exchange, or another method the rules or a court order allow.
6. Prepare and file the rule 6.14(7)(b) witness statement, from the person served, addressing whether the contents or purpose of the application were communicated to the child or protected party — unless the Official Solicitor exception in rule 6.14(8) applies.
7. Keep a clear record of what was served, on whom, and when. If service is later challenged, the witness statement and the indorsed document are what the court will look at.

For the wider landscape of family court paperwork this form sits alongside, see our overview of family court forms.

What to do if you are not sure

Working out whether rule 6.14 applies to your case, and who the correct person to serve actually is, depends on the specific family proceedings you are involved in and the capacity of the respondent — questions that are easy to get wrong without seeing the papers. If service is not done correctly, it can delay your case or give the other side grounds to challenge it later.

This guide provides general information about Form D5 and rule 6.14 of the Family Procedure Rules 2010. It is not legal advice and is not a substitute for advice tailored to your specific circumstances. The law described was accurate as at July 2026 and is subject to change — always check GOV.UK and legislation.gov.uk for the current position.