Regional law firm Tees has called for better funding to help couples facing separation and divorce given the unacceptable delays in the family court.
Family court delays worsening
- There are over 1,000 new cases starting in the family court every working day, with average length of cases up 36% since 2018.
- Public funding for legal advice could reduce delays and improve outcomes for children.
- The call comes during Resolution’s Good Divorce Week – designed to promote a better way for separating couples.
Tees Law joins national call for reform
Sally Powell, Executive Partner of Tees’ Family Law team, and a member of Resolution, the body representing 6,500 family justice professionals in England and Wales, has made the call as part of Good Divorce Week, an initiative to help raise awareness of ways to minimise conflict for separating couples.
The call comes off the back of a damning parliamentary report which reveals the average duration of private cases in the family court has increased from 26 weeks in 2018 to 41 weeks last year – a 36% increase.
With latest statistics showing that, on average, over a thousand cases are started in the family court each working day, it’s clear that these delays are not going to reduce without better resources.
Meeting with local MP Josh Dean
On Friday 7 November, Tees invited local Labour MP for Hertford and Stortford, Josh Dean, to their Bishop’s Stortford office to discuss their clients’ experiences of the family justice system and the Government’s plans for reform to the rights of unmarried couples.
The Family Law team at Tees were pleased to get some time with Josh Dean MP, who commented, “the priority has to be delivering change that people feel. This applies in the family court, not just for the long-term impact but for the right now.”
“The current family justice system is failing families”
Sally Powell said: “As a member of Resolution, I follow a Code of Practice which means I am committed to helping couples find a non-confrontational approach to divorce and separation. This includes avoiding a lengthy and adversarial process through the courts, which in our local area are at breaking point.
Lack of early legal advice means people risk entering the court process unprepared, which can prolong proceedings, increase costs, and escalate conflict between the couple.
The Government should signpost separating couples to take early legal advice and should better fund the court system for those families that really need the court’s help.
As family lawyers, my colleagues and I want to help couples resolve the issues that arise on family breakdown as swiftly and as amicably as possible, so that they can move on with their lives; but the current family justice system is failing families.
This Good Divorce Week, we’re calling on the Government to find a better way.”
A call for early legal advice and better resources
Resolution’s Vision for Family Justice called on the Government to invest in early legal information and advice, so that couples have the best chance of reducing conflict and, where possible, avoiding a lengthy court process.
Melanie Bataillard-Samuel, National Chair of Resolution, added: “Our members are committed to helping separating couples minimise conflict. But they’re currently hampered by a perfect storm of an under-resourced court system, a lack of access to information and advice, and rising numbers of people having to represent themselves in court.
I’m proud of our members’ efforts to raise awareness of these important issues during Good Divorce Week, as well as their commitment to our Code of Practice all year round. We’ll continue to make the case to government that our members cannot do this alone: we need to ensure the public has access to the right advice at the right time.”
