Cambridge Family Law Practice

November 28 to December 2 is Good Divorce Week for 2022. This annual event is staged by family law organisation Resolution in order to promote its overall aim of reducing acrimony and conflict in divorce.

Resolution (formerly the Solicitors Family Law Association) was founded in 1982 to promote a constructive, non-confrontational approach to family law disputes, moving away from the traditional winners vs losers framing with a firm focus on negotiation and out-of-court settlements. Membership now exceeds 6,500 family lawyers, with each committing to abide by the organisation’s code of practice when dealing their clients.

Simon Bethel, one of the partners here at Cambridge Family Law Practice and former Chair of both Resolution’s Children Committee and the Cambridge Collaborative Law Group, said:

“My partners and I are all firm believers in the Resolution approach to family law. Divorce and disputes over children are some of the most emotive and upsetting that the majority of us will ever experience and a focus on negotiation and compromise can make an enormous difference to the outcomes experienced by our clients and their families. It puts the children first.”

In addition to the promotion of a constructive approach to family law disputes during Good Divorce Week, Resolution also hopes to highlight the unfortunate but continuing capacity problems in many family courts across the country. These can lead to lengthy delays for even the most routine hearings of financial matters and childcare arrangements.

According to Resolution:

“We know that Resolution members work every day to help families resolve disputes – an ethos that is set out in our Code of Practice – but if the government funded early legal advice, more cases could be resolved without having to go to court (where it is safe and appropriate to do so). It would ensure that those cases that need to be resolved by Court can be dealt with in a timely manner.”

Cambridge Family Law Practice has also recently launched its One Lawyer offering, which allows for one of our lawyers to advise both parties to a divorce. Obviously, this is not appropriate in all cases, but where it is, it can be a great approach for all involved, often reducing acrimony and removing the need for court hearings.

The organisation urged members to highlight Good Divorce Week on social media and to meet with their MPs to discuss “the issue of court backlogs and the serious impact it’s having on families – particularly thinking about children who are involved in these disputes.”

If you’d like to discuss how to have a “good” divorce or our One Lawyer offering then please contact us on 01223 443333.