Family cases have been in the news a bit recently with issues over pre-nuptial agreements and threats of being disinherited but the one which stood out from a mediation point of view was this report from the Daily Mail – http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2563048/Family-judge-tells-warring-couple-settle-cup-tea-worked.html where the Judge suggested that parents should sit down and have a cup of tea and a chat when handing children over between them. After ten years of litigation and 24 court hearings it seemed to have worked.
Of course, perhaps they should have tried mediation at an earlier stage rather than embarking on proceedings that must have been costly – both emotionally and financially. The mediator would have explained the effect of hostility on the children, drawn on experience of other couples and research and encouraged a co-operative approach to parenting rather than the adversarial approach brought about by Court proceedings where attitudes harden and each tend to feel the other is getting at them and, in the end, the Judge tells them what is going to happen.
To find out how mediation can help parents make arrangements for bringing up children even though no longer living together – after all the children love each parent – then please call or e-mail us – 01872 225022 or [email protected]*