Changes in the Family Procedure Rules steer parties away from the court room and towards non-court dispute resolution.   

From 29^th April 2024, there are significant changes to the Family Procedure Rules, promoting the court’s powers to encourage parties to attend non-court dispute resolution at every stage in proceedings, for matters involving children and/or a financial dispute.    

The court will require parties to file and serve Form FM5, setting out their views on using non-court dispute resolution as a means of resolving matters raised in the proceedings.  The court can then adjourn proceedings to allow parties to attend non-court dispute resolution, and If one or both parties fail to attend, then the court may make an order for costs against the non-complying party. 

The change in the rules follows the recent case of Re X (Financial Remedy: Non-Court Dispute Resolution) [2024] EWHC 538 (Fam) where Mrs Justice Knowles commented that the parties’ failure to engage in non-court dispute resolution was ‘utterly unfathomable’ and that ‘Litigation is so often corrosive of trust, and scars those who may need to collaborate and co-operate in future to parent children’  

In many cases, non-court dispute resolution such as mediation, collaborative law and family arbitration, allow parties to reach an agreement quicker, whilst avoiding the significant expense and stress of litigation. 

Whilst the new rules do not compel parties to engage in non-court dispute resolution, it is hoped that the change in the rules will result in a culture shift with parties being encouraged to attend alternative forms of dispute resolution at every stage in the proceedings, or risk potential costs consequences by failing to do so.