Why conciliation is being given a boost in Out of Court Services
Released On 14th Sep 2022
In a recent radio broadcast Sir Andrew MacFarlane, the Senior Judge of the Family Courts stated that too many cases were ending up in Court. He explained that the law provides a structure to resolve disputes but “in the end it is not a legal issue, it is a relationship problem that they have.” Tracey Parsons, an Accredited Family Mediator and Solicitor explains how a pioneering new conciliation scheme is being used in the family courts to help with child arrangements during divorce proceedings.
We are fortunate that one of our local Courts is piloting a new way to manage applications for Child Arrangement Orders. Under the Pathfinder Pilot, early in the procedure, a Child Impact Assessment is prepared by the Court Welfare Service so that parents can understand the impact of their situation on the children. Subject to any safety concerns, the Court considers referring families to out of court services to resolve the issues.
Family mediation which is an alternative to court proceedings has been given a boost. The government has introduced a financial incentive for those trying to sort out child arrangements in family mediation. The voucher scheme provides up to £500 contribution by voucher to mediation services to assist those trying to resolve issues over children. Subject to the scheme rules, Battens can offer this to clients.
The best outcome is a family settlement which is negotiated where there is a sense of fairness and those involved are able move on to emotional independence. As experienced specialist family solicitors we can assist and advise on sorting issues which are legally resolvable, and we are familiar with the difficulty of doing this amidst an emotionally demanding relationship breakdown.
Our Family Law solicitors are all members of the national specialist association “Resolution”. A main objective of Resolution is to reduce conflict in resolving financial or child arrangement issues whenever possible. Members sign up to the Code of Practice which includes supporting and encouraging families to put the best interests of any children first.
As the lead family law Judge has explained, where there are no issues of domestic abuse, protection or safeguarding, the family courts should be the last resort when trying to sort out arrangements for children. Solicitor assisted negotiated settlements, whether in family mediation or otherwise, is preferred in most cases. It is established that by getting early legal advice individuals are far less likely to end up in Court.
