AUST: Khan has law group backing for reform
From http://tamworth.yourguide.com.au/detail.asp?class=news&subclass=local&category=general%20news&story_id=294349&y=2004&m=3
Khan has law group backing for reform
By Gary Ruddick
Monday, 22 March 2004
TAMWORTH solicitor Trevor Khan has persuaded the Family Law Committee of the NSW Law Society to give unreserved support for a new procedure for children's cases in the Family Court.
Mr Khan, the endorsed National Party candidate for New England at the upcoming federal election, said the change was aimed at making the process less formal and adversarial, thereby reducing the potential of parties to become locked in disputes over past differences.
A member of the Family Law Committee since the start of 2003, Mr Khan said the Law Society committees were presently dominated by city-based lawyers.
"One of my reasons for becoming involved in the Family Law Committee was to provide a
regional voice.
"As in all professions, the vast majority of those who sit on professional boards and committees are from the city and therefore do not have an understanding of the problems of people in regional areas," Mr Khan said.
The new initiative involved a radical change in the way children's futures were managed in the Family Court and would provide an opportunity for people involved in family disputes to reduce the time, costs and emotional energy involved in disputes over children.
Mr Khan said he believed the time and costs could be halved.
Many cases involving parties in the Tamworth region took between nine and 18 months to be heard and ran for between three and seven days, and longer.
"If the initiative is adopted, it should reduce most cases to between two and three days and reduce the hearing delays to between three and six months," Mr Khan said.
The trial program would initially be run through the Sydney and Parramatta registries of the Family Court and involve about 100 cases.
If successful, it should be adopted in regional areas.
"The Family Court's aim was to reduce the complexities of children's cases and a major feature of the program would be the early intervention of judges in the
proceedings.
That was to ensure that the parties, and the lawyers, focused on the real issues relating to the children, rather than on the issues which may have led to the breakdown of the relationship.
"In addition, the usual rules of evidence will be relaxed, in an effort to make the proceedings less complex and confusing for the parties.
"The judge will help the parties identify the issues and determine whether various witnesses need to be called.
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