A Better Way: Making the Family Court the Last Resort

Most family law professionals know that separating families are better off not arguing in court. All too often, that route is a waste of precious finances, harmful to children and emotionally distressing for the adults involved. Yet time and again that's where disputes end up.

Stephen Wildblood KC and Dr Freda Gardner think that is not good enough and argue their case in this new book which is a call for change to everyone in the family justice system.

For the past few years, the pair have been working as a team to provide supportive, non-court dispute resolution combining legal and psychological expertise to work with families so they can resolve their issues before they even think of court. Having honed the concept, they now think it should be the first port of call for all separations and in A Better Way explain why. They look at the harm families suffer within the current system and review the existing non-court methods of dispute resolution, which are still viewed by too many separating couples as precursors to court. They also draw on family dispute resolution processes worldwide, in particular from Scandinavia, to make their case for change.

Punchy, thought-provoking, timely and hugely important, A Better Way: Making The Family Court the Last Resort should change family law practice forever.

Who would find this book useful?

Family law solicitors and barristers; Family law policy makers; Family law judges; Support groups working with families; CAFCASS staff; Family law campaigners

Stephen Wildblood KC is a family law barrister and judge. While he still sits as a judge part-time he now devotes much of his time to Non-Court Dispute Resolution in all areas of family law as part of GardnerWildblood LLP, in partnership with his co-author Dr Freda Gardner. He is Vice-President of the FMA (Family Mediators Association), has contributed to over twenty legal textbooks and is also a playwright and novelist.

Dr Freda Gardner is a clinical psychologist who has worked with parents and children providing assessments and intervention since 1989. She has been a Law Society approved expert witness since 2000 and in 2005 she opened Orchard House Family Assessment and Intervention Centre in 2005 where she is Director of Services.