UK: Fathers spurn plan to save parents from court battles
From Guardian (UK)
The Guardian (Britain)
20 March 2004
Fathers spurn plan to save parents from court battles
Government unveils scheme to encourage mediation in contact rows
By Clare Dyer, legal correspondent
Measures unveiled by the government yesterday to try to divert separated
parents from bitter court battles over their children were condemned by
fathers' groups as "doomed to failure."
Fathers4Justice, the group whose stunts have paralysed traffic around the
country, pledged to step up its campaign for a better deal for separated
fathers.
Pilot schemes to encourage warring parents to resolve contact disputes by
mediation will be launched in London, Brighton and Sunderland from next
September.
But fathers' organisations predicted that the scheme would fail and
criticised the decision not to go ahead with a pilot more closely modelled
on a successful "early intervention" scheme in Florida and other US states.
The department of constitutional affairs had been consid ering a scheme
modelled on one which has dramatically cut the number of court cases in
Florida. Judges, lawyers and other professionals had consulted for three
years and come up with a plan under which parents would be presented with
sample parenting plans, with an assumption of generous time with the
children for both mother and father.
Instead, the more ad hoc "family resolution" scheme favoured by the
Department for Education and Skills will go ahead. Parents who apply to
court for contact orders will be encouraged to go to mediation to try to
agree their own arrangements within two weeks, instead of waiting 16 weeks
for a court hearing. But mediation is voluntary and unless both parents
agree, it will not take place.
Tony Coe, president of the Equal Parenting Council, said the initiative was
"doomed to failure" and parents should have a legal presumption of contact
with their children.
He added: "It isn't going to make, as far as we can see, any practical
difference.
"We need simplicity so everybody knows the moment they go to court, the
court is going to be aiming towards a shared parenting plan unless there is
a genuine reason why that should not take place - if a parent is violent or
abusive."
"Mediation is all well and good, and we are all supportive of mediation,
but it is of no value if you don't have the authority of the court behind
it."
The minister for children, Margaret Hodge, and the family justice minister,
Lord Filkin, also announced an additional ??3.5m for child contact services,
including funding of 14 new contact centres and the introduction of new
forms to ensure judges are aware of accusations or incidents of domestic
violence at the start of cases.
Jim Parton of Families Need Fathers described the family resolution scheme
as "watered down and ineffectual."
Fathers 4 Justice, whose members dress as super-heroes to stage protests on
cranes, said the pilot was "cynical" and an "absolute sham". Matt O'Connor,
the group's founder, said: "From our point there are no good points."
He added that "to make matters worse", the Children and Family Court
Advisory and Support Service (Cafcass) would be involved in administering
the scheme. Cafcass was heavily criticised by the Commons constitutional
affairs committee last year.
It found there were "serious failings" in the organisation which was unable
to cope with the demand for its services.
A spokesman for the Department for Education and Skills stressed the scheme
was a pilot, which would be evaluated after a year. The initiative was
welcomed by Relate, and by the Solicitors Family Law Association, which
advocates mediation in disputes.
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