June 25, 2018 34 comments
Today, The Times reports a significant increase in the number of applications made to the Family Courts as a result of fathers wanting to resolve the arrangements for their children following separation and divorce. The article also records the pressure this is placing on the Family Justice system. The leading family judge in the Country,…
June 26, 2017 7 comments
As many as 60 per cent of couples seeking a divorce do not attend a Mediation Information and Assessment Meeting (MIAM) before taking their case to court. In April 2014, the then-coalition government made the attendance of such meetings compulsory for anyone who wanted to bring their marriage to an end. However, a new report…
January 25, 2017 6 comments
Along with the decree absolute, consent orders are the traditional end point of any divorce settlement. As the name implies, such orders set out what each party has agreed to, the terms on which they have consented to a financial settlement. Typically they describe precisely how you and your soon-to-be-former-spouse will divide your assets, whether…
January 24, 2017 1 comment
For reasons I won’t go into here, I think I may have gained a reputation in some quarters for being an opponent of mediation as a means of resolving family disputes. In fact, nothing could be further from the truth. As I have said here previously, I very nearly trained as a mediator way back…
January 24, 2017 2 comments
A charity has called for an increased use of mediation during family breakdown. The public needs a better understanding of the divorce process so children and other “at-risk parties” can be better protected, the Family Mediation Association (FMA) insists. This call comes during the organisation’s Family Mediation Week, which launched yesterday and will run until…
October 11, 2016 2 comments
Four out of five divorced couples did not consider mediation, new research shows. Mediation Information and Assessment Meetings(MIAMS) are used to highlight the benefits of mediation and have technically been compulsory since April 2014 for anyone planning to divorce in the family courts or pursue a disagreement regarding children. But research released earlier this year…
July 1, 2016 0 comments
The number of people who attended Mediation Information and Assessment Meetings (MIAMs) in the first three months of 2016 is lower than it was over the same period last year. Newly published Ministry of Justice figures have revealed that between January and March only 3,384 MIAMs were held. This represents a 14 per cent drop…
June 22, 2016 2 comments
Last night, the first in a three-part documentary series was shown on BBC2. Equal parts frustrating and intriguing, Mr v Mrs: Call the Mediator offered a behind-the-scenes look at professional mediators struggling to steer different divorcing couples through this much discussed alternative to the family court. In this video I give my own reactions and…
April 4, 2016 7 comments
From time to time I have had the great privilege of meeting some prestigious academics in the field of family law. They are the people whose opinions count at the highest levels and it’s always a pleasure to listen to those whose opinions are challenging, as they push at boundaries, encourage discussion and try to…
April 4, 2016 3 comments
The number of mediation information and assessment meetings (MIAMs) has fallen to a new low. MIAMs have been compulsory for anyone contemplating taking a familiar dispute to court since April 2014. They are designed to encourage participants to explore mediation and consider whether it might be a suitable way to address their dispute. They were…
