Feuding families have been urged by senior solicitors to try and settle their differences out of court.
This is to avoid lengthy delays caused by a backlog of cases caused by the coronavirus pandemic. The world is starting to return to a level of normality, however the effect of Co-Vid 19 will been long lasting, this is no acceptance to the courts as both the Crown and Civil courts have overrun will back dated matters.
The number of unresolved cases facing family courts, which deal with parental disputes, divorce, adoption and child protection, has soared by over 20 per cent in the past year. There were more than 42,000 outstanding cases this year because of more referrals and delays caused by the overload
This has led to warnings that some vulnerable children are being left on the wayside as court proceedings are having to drag on.
We at Wainwright and Cummins have our own mediation service, for families who need support but can’t see eye-to-eye.
This will help on two fronts:
1) You will save a lot of money on court fees. As there is little to no legal aid support for family matters. So both sides will have to spend a large amount of funding to come to a reasonable arrangement/ agreement.
2) This will be a lot quicker, as the court are slowly getting thought the backlog, but most case’s will need at least 3 individual courts dates just to get the matter to a judge to resolve.
Almost all cases involving children, apart from those involving domestic abuse allegations, were suitable for arbitration. Leading to long delays, resulting from a lack of judicial capacity and the need to prioritise the most urgent cases, impact significantly on families involved in disputes over financial or child arrangements.
The Ministry of Justice has allocated £3.4m of emergency funding to ensure family courts have the extra staff to deal with “unprecedented demand during the pandemic.
Sir Andrew McFarlane, president of the family division, has backed the greater use of arbitration. He said it was “startling and worrying” that around 40 per cent of separating parents take questions about their children’s care to a family court.
He said: “Where there are no issues of domestic abuse or child protection, parents ought to be able, or encouraged, to make arrangements for their own child, rather than come to a court of law and a judge to resolve the issues.”
However if the relationship is beyond reproach then we can help you in getting your matter in front of a judge. With our spiciest family team we can assist you in getting a divorce and any child arrangement. If this is something that you are looking for assistance in please email family@wainwrightcummins.co.uk or give us a call on 0207 737 9330
We at wainwright and Cummins are able to help with our in-house medication team, we can help estranged families can come to an agreement regarding the children. We are able to offer families the support they need and help try open up a dialog and hopefully help the family grow and develop even after a messy breakup. Contact Dominic.Geodjenian@wainwrightcummins.co.uk to arrange an appointment.
