Debate over whether family mediation should be voluntary or compulsory?
The Family Mediation Trust are running a debate on the 18th of October, exploring if family mediation should be made mandatory.
The Centre For Excellence in Family Mediation is hosting a live debate to help family mediators and legal professionals explore this tough issue.
One of the founding principles of all mediation, including family work, has always been that it is a voluntary process that people must enter willingly. Considerations of safety and fairness are key issues. However, with family court delays and pressures and court cases incurring expenses, should mediation now be mandatory when safe?
Mediators may also have to deal with increased workloads and higher waiting times for families to access the service, should it be made compulsory. There is also the consideration of higher levels of conflict between separating couples, which may also impact family mediation processes. Can the system evolve and meet the challenge?
Alternative dispute resolution, such as family mediation, is increasingly the first choice in other countries, including Australia and Belgium.