2.Main Content
2004 Family mediation
This page contains an outline of this research, and a summary of the key findings. Details of how to find the full report can be found at the bottom of the page.
Title
“Picking Up The Pieces: Marriage and Divorce Two Years After Information Provision”
What is it about?
This was a follow-up study to the new procedures for divorce which were piloted when the new Family Law Act was passed in 1996. The Act was subsequently repealed, and many of its provisions ended. This study aimed to examine the information parents and families received about separation and divorce, the decisions they made and the actions they took. In particular it looks at their use of family mediation to resolve disputes.
Who did it?
The research was carried out by Professor Janet Walker and the Newcastle Centre for Family Studies at Newcastle University. It was commissioned by the Department for Constitutional Affairs (DCA), completed in September 2003, and published in March 2004.
Key findings
- Only 10% of people in the study used mediation.
- 90% of those using mediation also got legal advice from a solicitor.
- 25% of couples managed to resolve all the issues in dispute through mediation, but 62% left mediation with issues still needing to be resolved.
- 46% of mediation users said they were satisfied with mediation, 19% were dissatisfied, and a further 19% very dissatisfied.
Where parties were dissatisfied with mediation, their most common concerns were:
- outstanding issues were unresolved
- mediation agreements were unenforceable
- they felt that they had been put under pressure to make an agreement
- they felt they had not received sufficient advice
Most people attending mediation did not feel that it had helped to make divorce less distressing or that it had helped them to improve communication, share decision-making about parenting, reduce conflict or avoid going to court.
The researchers conclude that mediation will continue to be used by only a minority of divorcing or separating couples, and that the majority, including most of those who do use mediation, will continue to be dependent on legal services.
Key websites
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