5 go to Jersey - NCDR in the Family Courts

We were delighted to once again send a delegation of family finance barristers to the Corbett le Quesne Family Law Conference from 2-4 October. This is always a brilliant event providing chances to socialise and network with other family law practitioners, alongside a really informative conference.  

Friday started with uncharacteristically gloomy weather, so the beach football was sadly cancelled (on reflection, probably not a bad thing!) During the morning there was a meeting of Women in Family Law who heard from Amanda Gardiner, a divorce coach who also trains family professionals, giving them practical coaching skills to build stronger client relationships, manage expectations and de-escalate conflict all whilst protecting their wellbeing. 

After lunch, the Conference began. The focus was on non-court based dispute resolution. With ongoing delays in the family court system, and the expectations from the judiciary that NCDR will be considered at all stages, this was a very timely discussion of the different options which are available. Some, such as mediation, have been around for some time and are tried and tested. Others are new, and are being created in order to tailor the solutions to individual clients and their needs. 

The keynote speaker was Sir Nicholas Francis, who was appointed a High Court Judge in the Family Division in 2016, but who has since returned to practice to conduct private FDRs and finance and children arbitrations. His wide experience spanning the traditional court process, as well as various forms of NCDR, made him a very compelling speaker. 

Over the course of the afternoon, delegates heard from a range of speakers who delivered sessions on mediation and safeguarding within mediation; The Certainty Project (a tailor made solution for divorcing couples which purposely combines more than one form of NCDR - for example providing for mediation within ongoing arbitration proceedings); arbitration in respect of children and finances; the use of civil mediation within family proceedings; and the children pro bono arbitration project. Each of the sessions provided great food for thought, and provided straightforward information about how different forms of NDCR could work in almost all cases.