Reframing the mediation debate in Irish all-issues divorce disputes: from mediation vs. litigation to mediation and litigation

Mediation currently plays a minor role in the Irish family justice system, yet a policy consensus exists that more couples should be encouraged to mediate and that increased rates of mediation will reduce the numbers seeking redress through the courts. The Mediation Act 2017 adopts this position, assuming that the provision of information on mediation will increase uptake and that mediation offers an alternative to litigation for most civil disputes. This article reviews attempts in Ireland, England and Wales to encourage family disputants to mediate, identifying weaknesses in the information strategy. It also examines the legal framework governing all-issues divorce and dissolution in Ireland, pointing to the limited potential for mediation to act as an alternative to litigation. It concludes by arguing that policy focus must shift away from encouraging mediation as an alternative to litigation towards more nuanced understanding of mediation as a support to court based dispute resolution.     

AN EXPLORATORY STUDY OF SUPERVISED ACCESS AND CUSTODY EXCHANGE SERVICES

The detrimental effect of parental conflict in protracted child custody and visitation disputes is well established in the literature. However, little is known about the impact of parental conflict on children when visitation takes place in a protected setting. Part of a larger study that examined the broader issues related to parental and child involvement in a supervised access and custody exchange service, this article specifically explores the influence of parental participation on child well-being. This exploratory effort reveals that children's level of adjustment remained stable over 6 months of participation while visitation returned to court-ordered levels and interparental contact was precluded by staff intervention.     

关于离婚诉讼中按揭房屋分割问题的思考

随着社会进一步发展,在离婚诉讼中,涉及到按揭房的分割争议也越来越多了,而如何处理好这一争议,将是法律实务应当面对的一个现实问题。由于目前我国法律上对这一现象并没有很明确的规定,因此,本文拟从离婚诉讼中就按揭房屋的处理作一些分析探讨。     

Fairness and Justice for All? The House of Lords in White v. White [2000] 2 F.L.R. 981

In the recent U.K. decision of White v.White, the House of Lords clarified thelaw to be applied in applications under s. 25of the Matrimonial Causes Act 1973. Itconfirmed that the overriding goal of the courtin such cases was to achieve fairness, but,crucially, it articulated a view of fairnesswhich took equality and non-discrimination asstarting points. On this view, the courtchallenged historically gendered assumptions offairness, contribution to the family welfare,and the value of different kinds of work. Whilethe decision has far-reaching potential toachieve a form of substantive equality forwomen in cases of divorce, there is a dangerthat it may be confined to those cases, andissues of family finances will continue toappear unrelated to broader state policies.     

Parenting Coordination: The Risks of a Hybrid Conflict Resolution Process

Parenting coordination is a conflict resolution process that blends the roles of mediator, decision maker, monitor, assessor, educator, counselor, and enforcer for families involved in high‐conflict divorces. This article explores the potential benefits and risks of blending roles in terms of efficiency, effectiveness, trust, posturing, dual roles, self‐determination, and allegations of bias.     

论夫妻一方婚前借款购置不动产的利益归属——对“《婚姻法》司法解释(三)征求意见稿”第11条的商榷

近年以来,离婚时夫妻一方婚前借款购置的不动产之归属争议越来越多,法学研究中对此类问题的认识分歧较大,各地人民法院对此类争议的裁判结果也不一致。根据"《婚姻法》司法解释(三)征求意见稿"第11条的规定,应考虑离婚时不动产的市场价格及共同清偿借款等因素,要求"不动产权利人对另一方进行合理补偿",具有相当大的合理性。但该规定可能存在重财产利益"清算"而轻人身关系特殊性的嫌疑,它可能因为对女性的弱势地位重视不足而不利于妇女。夫妻既是两个各自独立的利益主体,又是彼此紧密结合的共同生活伴侣。区分婚姻当事人双方的财产利益,不应当脱离婚姻的特殊性。处理这类不动产归属争议的司法裁判规则,宜根据不动产用途、财产来源、当事人对财产的贡献等因素,予以公平合理对待。     

CONSULTANT CONDUCT IN ANTICIPATION OF A CHILD CUSTODY EVALUATION: ETHICAL AND SOCIAL DILEMMAS AND THE NEED FOR NEUTRAL PARENT EDUCATION

Mental health professionals are being retained with increasing frequency as “custody consultants” to prepare a parent for a child custody evaluation. While this practice may serve a legitimate function, no ethical guidelines clearly govern the conduct of a consultant in such circumstances. This lack of guidance has led to professional disagreement regarding the ethical implications of the practice. This ethical ambiguity is accompanied by social concern regarding the high cost of custody consulting, which has the practical effect of denying consulting services to low‐income or self‐represented litigants. This Note will describe the growing practice of custody consulting and the ethical and social unease currently associated with the practice. This Note will then propose that mandatory parent education programs be developed for parents preparing to undergo a custody evaluation. This type of educational program would provide many of the benefits of custody consulting in an ethically neutral fashion and would ensure that all parents have access to the benefits of this growing practice.     

GUEST EDITOR'S INTRODUCTION TO SPECIAL ISSUE ON ATTACHMENT THEORY,SEPARATION, AND DIVORCE: FORGING COHERENT UNDERSTANDINGS FOR FAMILY LAW

Every day in family law courts and mediation rooms across the world, complex decisions are made about postseparation parenting that affect the developmental outcomes of countless children. Attorneys, judges, parents, and even mental health professionals are often poorly equipped to accurately apply developmental knowledge to these decisions, including knowledge from the vast field of attachment theory. A mounting body of research from developmental psychology and neuroscience confirms attachment relationships to be a central axis of the child's developmental pathway, in every family, in every culture throughout the world. The health of a child's attachments can influence multiple and far‐reaching outcomes. As such, attachment theory and knowledge deserve a place in the family court's deliberations and planning for children, but to date, that place remains ill defined. Inconsistencies and misunderstandings, conundrums and complexities of applying attachment knowledge to divorce and separation matters are evident throughout the field. This Special Issue went in search of a shared praxis of meaning about attachment. The resulting collection of papers and interviews documents the views of multiple, eminent attachment experts, who discuss advances in the theory and consider guidelines for legal and mental health practitioners in applying attachment concepts to post‐separation decision making. This opening paper charts the course of this project and summarizes the major points of convergence.     

A REVIEW OF ONLINE DIVORCE EDUCATION PROGRAMS

Divorce education programs first surfaced over four decades ago. Today, many states mandate parents to participate in a divorce education program before their dissolution can be finalized. Changes in the technological landscape have allowed innovative practitioners to create online divorce education programs, yet these programs have not been formally evaluated for quality. Adapting a research design for evaluating face‐to‐face programs, we created an online divorce education review form and reviewed online divorce education programs that parents use to meet court‐mandated requirements. Results reveal that online programs have significant potential to help divorcing parents, yet there are areas of online program content and instructional strategies that can be improved. Program content that includes legal and court focused topics or modules, or that offer advice for families facing special circumstances such as domestic violence, could be enhanced. Additionally, most of the instructional strategies were passive. With this research, recommendations were made for improving program content and instructional strategies for online divorce education programs.