D-Day, should you stay or should you go?

With Family lawyers rubbing their hands at the New Year rush of enquiries whether this be on the media lead D-Day or Divorce Day, it was pleasing to see one of the leading Judges Sir Paul Coleridge come out and reverse the trend by promoting marriage. He sought to encourage couples to perhaps think twice before engaging in a process that has a massive impact on the vast majority of couples both financially and emotionally – not to mention the impact upon any children they may have.

In his article with the Times on 3rd January he said he wanted to promote marriage and reverse the “appalling and costly impact of family breakdown” on children and society at large.

The launch of a “Marriage Foundation” by the senior High Court judge aims to be the “go to” place for information on marriage. It will commission research, hold seminars and conferences, produce publications and in due course, lobby for “family-friendly” policies. With support from leading names in the judiciary including Baroness Butler-Sloss the former President of the Family Division, he also expects family lawyers and solicitors to endorse its aims and, it would seem, encourage financial contribution to cover the annual running cost of £150,000.

Whilst divorces are on the increase not all divorces involve the protracted court process and every encouragement is made by those family lawyers who are members of Resolution (http://www.resolution.org.uk/) to resolve the couple’s issues without confrontation and acrimony.

It is disappointing that articles such as this one http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-16410550 make no reference to Collaborative law as a way in which many couples are now finding solutions by committing to a process to avoid using the courts.

Communication is the key between clients to saving their marriages or separating amicably and is in the best interests of their children. However with emotions involved it is often one of the first things that is lost or reduced as parties seek to avoid conflict or fail to deal with it.

So will Russell Brand and Katy Perry listen to Sir Paul Coleridge’s advice and work at their 14 month marriage or will they be another statistic for the lawyers.