Family Law proposal

We are calling for wholesale Family Law Reform. The recent Norgrove “reform” is a sham and fails to deal with the underlying problems in the Family Courts. We are calling for :

1. The introduction of a Bill of Rights for Children, the Responsibilities for Parents and the launch of a Public Enquiry into the Family Justice System.
   
   
2. All Family Court Officials to receive gender neutral training to ensure that there was no bias in proceedings. It is vital that the child’s interest is at the heart of all proceedings. Mothers having the sole legal right to child residence is undemocratic and undermines the human right of the child’s access to both parents. For decades the Family Courts have been operating a policy of Gender Apartheid against men which has allowed mothers to ignore court orders with impunity. Children have suffered through all this and have been denied their Human Right of contact with both parents.
   
   
3. A policy of open, transparent and accountable courts is essential to ensure a fair case review which is free from biased CAFCASS reports and the withholding of children’s statements from the court.
   
   
4. Mandatory mediation and education courses about the effects of family breakdown prior to the engagement of legal representatives and court action.
   
   
5. A right in law for children to have a meaningful parenting relationship with both parents that reflects the status quo before separation.
   
   
6. A right in law for grandchildren to have a meaningful relationship with their grandparents that reflects the status quo before separation.
   
   
7. A legal presumption of ‘shared’ or ‘equal’ parenting based upon the status quo before separation with a default 50/50 starting point. This does not imply that there should not be a variation of time to suit all involved.
   
   
8. The effective enforcement of court orders, including the transfer of residence via a suspended residence order. They do work.
   
   
9. Children must be robustly protected against a violent parent whether it be a mother or father. This should include physical/mental abuse, parental alienation, and false allegations. When making allegations in court the person concerned must be made to swear under oath that they are telling the truth. If found to be lying they should face immediate prosecution and have to apply for contact if it is safe for the child. (see Family Courts – written question 105283 from Andrew Bridgen MP to Dominic Raab MP)
   
   
10. The removal of an unelected, unaccountable and unsackable judiciary who operate in complete secrecy. Such a system is an affront to a progressive, modern democracy.
    
    
11. The ending of the misleading statement that the courts act in ‘the child’s best interests’. They do not and cannot unless the child has equal access to both parents.