With the family court backlog increasing to over 110,000 open cases, delays in matters being heard is inevitable. A case can be in limbo for many months leaving parties in a difficult position of not being able to move forward whilst they wait for a hearing.
Applying to court for a hearing is not always the only option and there is a variety of alternative means of alternative dispute resolution such as mediation, arbitration and private FDRs available, giving parties a choice of how to try to resolve disputes. These can help keep costs down and also speed up reaching a resolution where you may be looking at a court date in six or more months time.
There are some cases that due to the background the alternatives to court are not appropriate and there will also be matters where a party wants a judge to hear them even though there may have potentially been more efficient ways forward.
Once court proceedings are issued then it is vital to co-operate with the requirements of the court as the court will make orders in a party’s absence. Ignoring court proceedings will not make them go away or stop a court from reaching a decision.
With family matters there is not a one size fits all solution and exploring options at an early stage can help avoid long drawn-out proceedings. If you are served with court documents then do not ignore them as you may end up with an order that has far reaching consequences.
A court hearing is not the only way to resolve family disputes, but all parties need to be willing to consider and engage with the alternatives if they do not want to add to the ever increasing waiting list for court time.
For more information on family matters or to find out how we can help you, please contact our Family Team on 0345 646 0406 or fill in our online enquiry form and a member of our Team will be in touch.