Our Chief Executive, Kevin Kane, comments on the need for the family justice system to better support separating families.

Our family justice system needs to better support separating families. 

Family cases are currently handled within the adversarial civil justice system – the same system used for settling disputes about debts or personal injury or medical negligence. 

That might work when a judge has to decide whether a contract was broken or a doctor made a mistake. But, it’s the wrong approach for families.

When separating parents end up in court, each is encouraged to present arguments against the other. The aim is to “win” the case. And that often means attacking the other parent’s character – even when both are competent, loving, and deeply loved by their children.

This kind of legal battle puts unbearable pressure on children who are already facing confusion and emotional upheaval.

We believe there’s a better way.

Children need both parents. Parents need support, not a system that pits them against one another.

It’s time to stop putting separated parents in a ring and urging them to fight. Let’s build a system that helps them put their children first.