1. Mapping Paths to Family Justice: Impact in the making? Professor Anne Barlow, University of Exeter, IAA Launch, Exeter, October 2014

2. What was our study trying to do?  To provide an up-to-date picture of awareness and experiences of three forms of out of court family dispute resolution (DR):  solicitor negotiations  mediation  collaborative law  To produce a ‘map’ of family dispute resolution pathways and consider which pathway(s) is/are most ‘appropriate’ for which cases and parties?  To consider which (if any) norms are embedded in these processes  To provide research evidence to inform policy and practice – & hopefully leading to impact as promised to ESRC.

3. Study design and methods  Project commenced July 2011 and Advisory Group appointed – our project ‘co-creators’  Phase One – Two National Surveys – 2011 - 2012  2974 (Omnibus) +3,700 (CSJPS) adults, nationally representative.  6,647 adults -awareness of FDR processes.  315 adults divorced/separated between1996 -2011, recorded 349 experiences of FDR processes.  Phase Two – Semi-structured Interviews – 2012 - 2013  Practitioners: nationally spread range of solicitors, collaborators, mediators (40).  Parties (96) (45 men; 51 women) recruited from national surveys and supplemented by other national recruitment strategies, with a mix of legally-aided and non-legally aided parties  44 had experienced solicitor negotiation  56 had experienced mediation (across a spread of mediation agencies)  8 had experienced collaborative law  Phase Three – 13 Recorded sessions – 2012 - 2014  Recording and analysing lawyer-client interviews (5), mediation sessions (5) & collaborative law meeting sessions (3).

4. Shifting Family Justice landscape  Policy shift towards out of court dispute resolution-  Legal Aid increasingly linked to assessment for mediation – (Legal Services Commission 2008, 2010)  Family Justice Review 2010/11indicated mediation was preferred dispute resolution method  Promised Legal Aid for collaborative law withdrawn in 2010  Legal aid withdrawn for legal advice and representation in virtually all private family law disputes following LASPO 2012 BUT retained for mediation and post mediation agreement advice  Introduction of a Single Family Court as part of the Family Justice Modernisation Programme- April 2014- Crimes and Courts Act 2013  MIAMs required before private family law proceedings issued in all cases- April 2014 – Children and Families Act 2014  But there was concern as no evidence base for this policy shift

5. Fulfilling the impact agenda Co-created research idea with key family DR practitioners and set up system of mutual exchange of ideas – aimed at significance and reach within Family DR professions nationally Involved spread of practitioners and policy makers in Project Advisory Group – consulting them on each project phase, developing and accepting public engagement offers and writing regular articles in a range of practitioner journals also read by policy makers Used practitioner and academic links with family policy makers to feed information to key players, leading to - membership of Government Task Force on Family Mediation and most recently participation in Cabinet Office mediation initiative and invitation to develop online tool for separating couples

6. Key findings  Academic findings focus on move away from family law protection to neo-liberal agenda focused on (inappropriate?) autonomy on sorting out separation  Practitioner and party findings show weaknesses and best practice in each DR process  One size DR does not fit all – presents problems for government agenda which are becoming apparent  Emotional readiness is a key factor in whether or not parties settle and which DR is appropriate  Need triage system which is open minded about appropriate DR rather than pushing just mediation for all and is better at identifying and dealing with power and control dynamics.

7. Next Steps – post-project impact continues  Invitations to make keynote speech at national conferences of two DR organisations (alongside Minister at one)- focus on practitioner best practice and training  One of these DR organisations is working with Cabinet Office on initiatives to improve awareness and experience of mediation and have referred them to our work and put us in touch with them - Watch this space?  Relationship counselling organisation One Plus One wishes to work with us, software specialists, lay people, practitioners and psychologists to develop online tool to test emotional readiness and advise on appropriate DR