Charles Russell today welcomes a new scheme launched by the Institute of Family Law Arbitrators (IFLA), to enable family law disputes, relating to finance or property, to be resolved by arbitration and away from the formal court process.
IFLA, a not for profit organisation, has been set up family lawyers' group Resolution, the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (CIarb) and the Family Law Bar Association, in association with the Centre for Child and Family Law Reform. It will enable parties to resolve financial disputes more quickly, cheaply and in a more flexible and less formal setting than a court room. It's anticipated that it will also save court resources and reduce pressure on the already stretched family courts.
Grant Howell, partner & family law arbitrator at Charles Russell, says: "The arrival of family law arbitration is the final piece of the jigsaw in resolving financial claims that arise in family breakdown. Until now, unless agreement could be reached on every aspect, people had no choice other than to go through contested court proceedings. Now couples can agree to arbitrate and deal with the matter more quickly, tailoring the arbitration to only those points that are in dispute. This means that the process will be more cost effective than using the court.
"There is also the added advantage of being able to choose the arbitrator who will then deal with the matter from beginning to end. The fact that the outcome will be completely confidential will also be attractive and may persuade even the most antagonistic high-profile people, for example, to choose arbitration.
Arbitration under the scheme will be conducted under the family arbitration rules which have been developed by IFLA. This means disputing couples can agree to appoint their own arbitrator, or have the IFLA select one for them from its register of approved arbitrators.
The scheme will cover: financial disputes arising from divorce; claims on inheritance from a child, spouse; financial claims made in England and Wales after a divorce abroad; claims for child maintenance between unmarried parents; disputes about ownership of a property between cohabiting couples and civil partnership financial claims.
Grant Howell concludes: "The court will still be there for those who do not want to go down the route of arbitration, but we anticipate it will be a very popular option. This is demonstrated by the fact that over 300 family lawyers, who know the court system so well, have rushed to sign up for the required training to become a family law arbitrator."
IFLA will govern and promote the scheme for family law arbitration in England and Wales.
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