Together with seven other divorce and family law specialists in Leeds we have launched Lawyer-Supported Mediation in the city.  The national ground breaking initiative comes at a time when more and more people are representing themselves at court following the withdrawal last year of Legal Aid for most family law cases.

The service offers a fixed fee package which includes mediation and independent legal advice for couples seeking to sort out issues concerning finance, children, divorce or any combination of these.

Fiona Kendall, partner at Jones Myers, who are leading the Leeds hub said: “This is a real chance to lead the way in bringing down the cost of family law services. Working as a likeminded group of lawyers and mediators, we can put an end to the widely-held view that lawyers are beyond the means of average income separating couples.”

Jones Myers will act as part of a carefully selected panel of family law experts from across the region to provide couples with a new method of resolving their differences in a cost effective manner.

Other firms involved are Chadwick Lawrence, Simpson Millar, Clarion, Lake Legal, Blacks Solicitors, Ison Harrison and Winston Solicitors.

A recent report by Napo, the union representing family court staff, claimed that the family courts were now 10 times more likely to see both parents in a custody dispute without legal representation as opposed to them being represented by a solicitor.

Publicly funded family mediation in the Leeds area has likewise struggled to divert separating couples from the courts. Data from the Ministry of Justice shows that between May and November 2013, the total number of mediations getting underway fell by just over 40% (41%), compared to the same period in 2012.

Trained mediator and founder of LawyerSupportedMediation.com, Marc Lopatin explains: “We dramatically reduce the cost of accessing legal experts by fusing their advice with family mediation, where separating couples can resolve their differences. We know from government data that two-thirds of people who begin mediation go on to reach agreement, so we need to find new ways of encouraging more people to try.

Beyond Leeds, the service is being piloted in Newcastle, Manchester and London.

Lawyer-Supported Mediation launches in six UK locations in April & May.

For a free estimate – including a fixed legal fee – call 033 0223 1188 or visit www.lawyersupportedmediation.com

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I’m still reeling from an article which sees top London divorce lawyers acting like their worst behaved clients who engage in mud-slinging, spare no punches divorce battles.

Centred on Spears’ three-yearly list of London’s top divorce lawyers, the bellicose boxers hurled insults with no holds barred – describing their peers as a “thug in lawyer’s clothing”, “a monster with a personality disorder” and “the go-to man for trench-fighting litigation”.

To add insult to injury the list comprises high profile names that have represented royalty and celebrities such as Sir Paul McCartney.

As a mediator, and one of the UK’s first arbitrators who advocates solutions which avoid traumatic court battles in favour of more non-confrontational approaches, I don’t believe that aggressive stances are appropriate – or productive.

In my world being an “aggressive litigator”, “a terrier” or “a nutter” doesn’t get you anywhere.  I see clients who want an experienced professional who will guide them the most challenging of times; help them sort out the financial aspects of a divorce and issues relating to their children.  Most people I see appreciate Jones Myers’ sensitive and civilised approach – helping them to stay away from lengthy, and potentially costly, court proceedings.

Of course I understand that there are situations where litigation in court is the inevitable outcome. Possibly because of a genuine failure to agree or perhaps less than frank financial disclose by one or other of the parties. Sometimes it’s just a refusal to discuss and negotiate. At Jones Myers we are equally experienced in the court process and tactics; where we are different is when we refuse to allow personalities to cloud judgement and to turn the event into an emotional and financially expensive bear garden.

The Spears’ list of London names supposedly represents the cream of divorce lawyers. More than 20 years ago the best family and divorce lawyers were in London, but that has changed and there is now a considerable ‘gang’ of us here in the North.  We can, and do, work on high profile divorces yet are just as accessible and affordable to middle England.  I could easily name 25 outstanding family and divorce lawyers among my colleagues across the North of England.  You only have to look at Chambers, the law industry bible, to see the breadth of expertise and quality from the Scottish Borders to the Midlands.

I often tell clients “the more you fight, the more it will cost you”, and with London lawyers charging eye-watering hourly rates (£500 is not un-typical) the price of divorce could be very high indeed.

What are your views about aggressive style divorce lawyers? Leave your comment below, tweet us @HelpWithDivorce or send us an e-mail.

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