Changing Practices For Changing Times 21 June 2012
Jan 17, 2016
Changing Practices For Changing Times
21 June 2012
Diversify and Thrive: Mediation Practice Development
Changing Practices for Changing Times
University of London, 21 June 2012
Steve Kirwan, Nowell Meller Solicitors
• Introduction• Who are we?• Context• Strategy• Practical Delivery• Conclusion
Outline of my presentation
• Nowell Meller Solicitors – a regional law firm based in North Staffordshire/ Stoke on Trent. Unless you are from the Midlands, you’ve probably not heard of us.
• The Mediation Centre (TMC) – a national mediation service based in the Midlands. You’ve probably heard of us.
Who are we?
• What are the biggest threats facing (traditional) family lawyers?– Changes to public funding – reduction in scope of
private legal aid– New (better?) competitors e.g. Co-operative Legal
Services– New technologies - De-skilling and increasing
commoditisation e.g. Wikivorce.com– Our attitude – too expensive, too insular, too stuck in
our ways and too inflexible
Part 1 – Context (Why?)
• What are the biggest opportunities?– New markets – deregulation is likely to increase the
size of the legal services market– Greater demand for affordable fixed price and lower-
risk services – if we do not design and deliver these, then someone else will do so
– Tailored advice – still a need for personal services based on perceived value
– Much greater support for dispute resolution – real alternatives to court-based litigation
Part 1 – Context
• What will family legal services look like in the future?– A lot less traditional law firms (20%+ less?)– A lot less traditional family lawyers– A lot more Self-Represented Clients (LIP’s)– A new breed of Dispute Resolution Professional?
• (with acknowledgements to the Standards Committee Workshop on “The Future of Family Law Services” Leeds, 23 March 2012)
Part 1 – Context
• Family Law Act 1996 Part II• Access to Justice Act 1999• FPR 2010 Part 3 and the Pre-Action Protocol• April 2011 compulsory assessment for mediation• November 2011 Family Justice Review Final
Report – key practitioners?• Govt. estimate 70% increase in mediations to
come because of LASPO changes
Growing support for mediation
• Survey reported in May/June issue of The Review– 78% said that courts made no enquiry into DR– 76% said that clients had not attended a MIAM and
proceedings were issued without an FM1– One-third said they had referred at least 90% of
applicants to a MIAM– One-fifth said they had referred less than 10% of
applicants to a MIAM
MIAMs – our members said
• Comments on MIAMs:– The scheme is causing delay– Screening for mediation suitability is a lawyer’s job– It is an unnecessary hurdle– Practice is inconsistent – they are not supported or
valued by the courts– It is too late in the day for mediation– It is too expensive– Some applicants are manipulating the process
MIAMs – our members said
• Keynote speech of The President at National Conference – apologies that MIAMs not working as they should in certain parts of the country
• Jackson LJ calls for a “serious campaign” to teach lawyers and judges the benefits of mediation to settle disputes (LSG 15 March 2012)
• Beverley Sayers presentation to Resolution’s National Conference in March 2012 – “ADR – threat or opportunity?”
Pressure for change
• Mediators as key practitioners moving from information hub through working in partnership with lawyers, PIPs providers and others
• Not yet clear what the Review had in mind – active case-management or general hand-holding?
• Need for further dialogue and pilot schemes• An opportunity to change the culture – with couples
focusing on the interests they share rather than on those that divide them
Final Report of FJR – Paras 4.94+
From this:-
To this:-
• “The pessimist complains about the wind;• the optimist expects it to change;
• the realist adjusts the sails.”
• William Arthur Ward
Winds of change
Part 2 - Strategy
• Faced with an inevitable decline in traditional family practice, how can we respond?
• Limited options– Down-size (again)– Embrace change – find a new way of delivering
existing services to existing and new clients (e.g. fixed price, packaged, unbundled)
– Embrace change – find new services to deliver (e.g. full range of dispute resolution, counselling, etc.)
Part 2 – Strategy (What?)
• Training options – suitability to be a mediator• Foundation Training Course• Recognition to carry out MIAMs• Assessment as competent by the LSC• Annual CPD• Need for on-going supervision and professional
practice consultant (PPC)• Time-scale?
Could you become a mediator?
• New bid round• PQQ by 18 June 2012• Non-competitive• Three stages:
– PQQ– Application for MQM and pass desk-top audit– Reply to ITT in October 2012 (for December 2012) or
January 2013 (for March 2013)
• NB. Requirements to enable you to reply to ITT
Could you bid for an LSC contract?
Part 3 - Practical delivery
• Commitment to Quality - Effective systems and procedures based around the requirements of the MQM
• Staff in place – administration, mediator(s) and supervisor (PPC)
• Facilities – e.g. separate waiting rooms, second mediation room
• Finances – properly costed and realistic planning
Part 3 – Practical Delivery (How?)
• Properly resourced and trained administration team
• User-friendly referral procedures• Effective management and supervision• You need to communicate your vision – possible
referrers, local community, courts, the public• Build local networks
Part 3 – Practical Delivery (How?)
2012 – The End of the World?
• The end date of the Mesoamerican (Mayan) Long Count Calendar – 21 December 2012
2012 – The End of the World?
• The end date of the Mesoamerican (Mayan) Long Count Calendar – 21 December 2012
Where are we?
2012 – The End of the World?
• The end date of the Mesoamerican (Mayan) Long Count Calendar – 21 December 2012
Where are we?
The beginning of the apocalypse?
2012 – The End of the World?
• The end date of the Mesoamerican (Mayan) Long Count Calendar – 21 December 2012
Where are we?
The beginning of the apocalypse? OR
A positive transformation marking the beginning of a new era?
• “It is not the strongest of the species that survive, nor the most intelligent, but the ones
most responsive to change.”
• Charles Darwin
Final thought (the bit at the end)
Changing Practices For Changing Times
21 June 2012
Thank you and safe journey
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