A Welcome

Welcome to “Family Justice Review in Action”, the Family Justice Review Panel’s first open meeting since the creation of The Family Justice Review Project, where members of the Panel will talk about their work and the future of the family justice system.

The Project was commissioned by the Ministry of Justice, Department of Education and the Welsh Assembly Government amidst mounting concerns by both parents and professionals that the family justice system was faltering.

As the system finds itself under-resourced and unable to cope with the growing case loads, it has begun to show signs of weariness. From unacceptable delays to unsustainable costs both running the system and using it, the Family Justice Review was established to try and find ways of helping the system, providing better ways for professionals to work inside the system and more family friendly services that aim to resolve family dilemmas quickly and efficiently, without the often traumatic levels of stress and anxiety to parents and children.

The Family Justice Review panel has been asked to look at the following areas:

• public and private law cases
• mediation and how best to support contact between children and non-resident parents or grandparents
• processes (but not the law) involved in granting divorces and awarding ancillary relief, and
• how the different parts of the family justice system are organised and managed.

“Family Justice Review in Action” will focus on these areas, what the Review is hoping to achieve and the current concerns these areas highlight for both families and professionals inside the family justice system. Our guest speakers, David Norgrove, Baroness Ritchie and John Coughlan lead this debate with the All Party Parliamentary Group on Family Law and The Court of Protection.