This item was published during the term of a previous administration that ended in April 2007
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Family Law Association annual meeting
19/11/2004
Every one of us might need to use family law if a
relationship breaks down, so we must improve the awareness
people have about their responsibilities and rights, the
Family Law Associations AGM in St Andrews was told
today.
Deputy Justice Minister Hugh Henry stressed that the
Executives proposed legislative changes could only be
effective if people knew the existing legal position and
the benefits that the proposals would bring. He said:
When we published our proposals for a family law bill,
we made clear that changes would be grounded in three
underlying principles - to safeguard the best interests of
children, to promote and support stability in families, and
to modernise the law to reflect the realities of families
in Scotland.
The responses to the consultation are broadly supportive
of our proposals.
But on some issues there was a divergence of opinion
between individual and organisational responses. We are
currently considering all the responses and, as the First
Minister made clear in his statement on the Executive
programme, we will bring forward a family law bill in the
near future.
No-one should underestimate the important benefits that
changes in the law can bring. But we cannot solve every
problem with legislation. We can solve some with better
communication. One of the key findings from our
consultation was that people do not have good access to
information about family law.
That is why I am confirming plans to introduce an
information campaign to highlight the likely changes in the
law and to try to dispel some of the myths that exist at
present - not least, the myth of common law marriage.
I am therefore very grateful to the Family Law
Association for offering to help us to prepare such an
information campaign. The Association has a great range of
expertise among its members and can continue to play an
important role in this sensitive area.
Mr Henry concluded:
The Family Law Bill cannot and will not cure all of the
many difficulties that families encounter. We must all work
hard to make sure that families today and in the future can
access the services that they need, when they need them. If
we achieve that then we support relationships and, most
importantly, safeguard the best interests of children.
The Family Law Associations Annual General Meeting was
held in the St Andrews Old Course Hotel. The conference was
chaired by Sheriff Brian Kearney, Glasgow's senior sheriff
and a member of the Judicial Studies Committee.
The Family Law Association was set up in 1989 and
membership consists of members of the legal profession in
Scotland with extensive experience, specialisation or
interest in family law.
The consultation paper Family Matters: Improving Family
Law in Scotland was published in April and more than 300
responses were received by the end of June. An analysis of
these responses has been published on the Scottish
Executive website:
www.scotland.gov.uk/familylaw
There have been a number of reports on areas of family
law in recent years, including a consultation paper -
Improving Family Law - published by the Scottish Office in
1999. This was followed by a Scottish Executive White Paper
in 2000, Parents and Children and then by the consultation
document Family Matters: Improving Family Law in
Scotland.
In the First Ministers legislative statement last month
he confirmed that final plans for family law legislation
would be published shortly.