Three judges involved with Sara Sharif’s care prior to her death have voiced “serious concerns” over mounting pressure for their identities to be revealed.
In December 2024, a judge ruled to block the public identification of three family court judges who oversaw cases related to the youngster’s care at the hands of her family members.
However, some media organisations have appealed against the decision, arguing that the judges should be identified in the interests of transparency.
This week, the unidentified judges submitted their concerns to the Court of Appeal, suggesting that being publicly identified may pose a risk to their families.
A solicitor speaking on behalf of the judges told the court: "Each of them has serious concerns about the risks which would arise if they were now identified.”
"It is important to underline that those concerns relate not only to their own personal wellbeing but also to their family members and others close to them, whose interests the court may consider should also be taken into account."
The judges also wanted "to convey their profound shock, horror and sadness about what happened to Sara Sharif."
The response came after a representative for journalists requesting the ban be lifted told the appeals court: “The judge’s order preventing the naming of those judges is unjustified, and undermines necessary efforts to increase transparency in the family justice system. It cannot be allowed to stand.”
Sara Sharif was found dead by police officers in Woking in August 2023, with the subsequent investigation discovering a campaign of abuse at the hands of her father and stepmother.
She had more than 70 injuries at the time of her death, including bruises, grazes, burns, as well as bleeding on the brain and other internal traumas.
Her father, Urfan Sharif, and his wife Beinash Batool, had quickly booked flights to Pakistan shortly after the youngster’s death.
Sharif and his wife were eventually jailed for life for the murder of Sara, sentenced to 40 and 33 years behind bars.
However, Sara’s tragic death has raised questions about the effectiveness of systems in place designed to protect vulnerable children in the UK.
Local authorities had been made aware of Sara’s father as early as 2010, and the youngster had been involved in several Family Court proceedings in the past.
A judge later granted Sara’s father custody in 2019, allowing the youngster to move into her father’s Woking property, where she would later die.
