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Today we are publishing our new report, ‘Just A Quick Question…‘, which tackles communication issues within family law processes, and making suggestions for courts, lawyers and clients.
One of the most common complaints made by callers to our helpline, and attendees at group meetings over the years, is that the language of family law procedures and even correspondence with their own solicitor is hard to follow. When our helpline staff first talk through the basics, clients often express shock and incredulity at how what they believed to be a “quick question” about parenting their children after divorce or separation rarely has a quick answer.
For most, the law is a foreign land and they feel like strangers in it. It can be bewildering and disempowering. And expensive.
Part of the problem is vocabulary, and the reluctance to use plain English in Scottish courts and legal proceedings. Another part is the difficulty in getting a clear picture in advance of what they can expect from the range of professionals and agencies they discover might have a voice in the future of the relationship they may have with their children.
‘Just a Quick Question …” was compiled by Mairi Welsh, a recent Glasgow Law School graduate, who worked with us over summer 2024. You can hear from Mairi about the report by watching the short video.
Shared Parenting Scotland Chief Executive, Kevin Kane, says, “We are very grateful to Mairi for the work she put into this report during her time as an intern with us. The issues around plain English have been discussed for many years. We believe there is a responsibility on a modern legal system to ensure that members of the public drawn into it can find their way around. In Singapore they take that literally with a virtual guide to the courtroom. If estate agents in Scotland can do a virtual video guide when selling a house, it can surely be possible for going to court. Decisions are more likely to be accepted when participants feel they have had a fair hearing.”
The report is split into three sections:
1) Work undertaken at SPS:
Mairi produced three pieces of work that have already been widely shared:
- A ‘Lawyer-Client Relations Guide’ aimed at improving communication between clients and solicitors, setting out what they can expect from each other in pursuit of their case
- A flow diagram guide to New Case Management Rules for family cases, intrduced in September 2023
- Video animation on Effective Co-Parent Communication – ‘How to Keep Your Cool When Co-parenting’
2) Initiatives in other jurisdictions
Issues around improved communication as part of effective justice are being tackled in jurisdictions around the world. We present two in this report:
- Utah Government Website’s Family Law Explainers
- Singapore’s Interactive ‘Discover the Courts’ Game/Guided Tour
3) Suggestions for Improving Access to Justice
- Plain English is important. The final section re-evaluates ‘The Use of Legal Jargon in Everyday Communication with Lay Persons’ and ‘Providing Official Information About Attending Court’.
Our thanks again go to Mairi for this report. Click on the image to download.