The Government announced yesterday that all divorcing couples who have a dispute to resolve around children or finances will be required to attend an assessment session to determine whether mediation would be appropriate before any applications to court would be allowed. You can read more about the proposals here.
At Higgins Miller we are strong believers in mediation and we already discuss the option with all of our clients. We typically refer to Family Mediation Manchester who are a north west based mediation company who can assist in all family disputes.
We do however have concerns that the Government sees mediation as an alternative to the courts system. Whilst there are a great many cases that can be resolved very successfully with the use of mediation there are cases for which it is simply not appropriate particularly if there is a risk of harm to a client or their children.
If you are separating from your partner and want to discuss the best way of resolving matters please contact us on 0161 4297251 or [email protected].