6th July 2010

Divorce solicitors, family law practitioners and anyone with an interest in the family justice system have been called upon, by the Family Justice Review Panel, to give their opinion of how the workings of the English and Welsh family law system can be improved.

The panel, appointed by the Ministry of Justice, the Department for Education and the Welsh Assembly Government, has now made a "Call for Evidence" to establish views on how the family justice system can best serve the interests of children and families who require help to overcome difficulties of divorce, family breakdown and issues of child care.

The "Call for Evidence" is part of a fundamental and comprehensive review of family law, called for by the coalition government, which is attempting to closely examine how to best use mediation and provide greater child contact rights of non-resident parents and grandparents.

Key areas to be focused upon in the review will be how to make the family law system more user-friendly and child-centric; which methods for resolving family disputes are best, finding alternatives to the law courts for divorce and disputes, and how the family justice system is governed, managed and funded.

Chair of the review panel, David Norgrove, said, "The family justice system is vitally important, attempting to resolve some of the most difficult issues in our society.

"We are ambitious in what we want to achieve; we would encourage as many people as possible to be ambitious in their responses."

Family lawyers, divorce solicitors, child services officials and anyone with an interest in the family justice system can read guidance on the "Call for Evidence" and fill in the online questionnaire by visiting the Ministry of Justice website.