New Resolution Code of Practice

At Taylor&Emmet our family solicitors are members of Resolution – First for Family Law.

Many, if not the majority, of lawyers who practice family law in England and Wales are members of this organisation, the ethos of which is a shared commitment to resolve family disputes in a constructive and non-confrontational way. This approach is underpinned by the Code of Practice which has been in place since the organisation was founded in the early 1980s.

At that time family solicitors tended to treat family breakup in the same way as any other legal disputes. Lawyers would fire off aggressive letters and threaten litigation without any thought for the effect such conduct had on the family as a whole, particularly the children. A forward thinking and enlightened group of lawyers started the Solicitors’ Family Law Association which became Resolution and now has 6500 members.

The Code of Practice has been overhauled to “reflect the changing family justice environment”. It is now a two sided card which reads:-

Resolution is a community of family justice professionals who work with families and individuals to resolve issues in a constructive way.

Resolution membership is about the approach we take to our work. This means that as a Resolution member, I will:

• Reduce or manage any conflict and confrontation; for example, by not using inflammatory language.
• Support and encourage families to put the best interests of any children first.
• Act with honesty, integrity and objectivity.
• Help clients understand and manage the potential long-term financial and emotional consequences of decisions.
• Listen to and treat everyone with respect and without judgment.
• Use my experience and knowledge to guide clients through the options available to them.
• Continually develop my knowledge and skills.
• Use the Resolution Guides to Good Practice in my day-to-day work.
• And I will work with other Resolution members to uphold this Code and ensure it is at the heart of everything I do.

On the reverse it states:-

Why choose a Resolution member?

Resolution members follow a Code of Practice that promotes a constructive approach to family issues and considers the needs of the whole family, in particular the best interests of children. This means:

• Listening to you, being honest with you and treating you with respect.
• Explaining all the options and giving you confidence to make the right decisions.
• Helping you focus on what’s important in the long-term.
• Helping you balance financial and emotional costs with what you want to achieve.
• Working with others to find the right approach and the best solutions for you.
• Managing stress in what can be an already stressful situation.

The previous version from 2007 was a one sided card which set out the principles as follows:-

Members of Resolution are required to:–

• Conduct matters in a constructive and non-confrontational way.
• Avoid use of inflammatory language both written and spoken.
• Retain professional objectivity and respect for everyone involved.
• Take into account the long term consequences of actions and communications as well as the short term implications.
• Encourage clients to put the best interests of the children first.
• Emphasise to clients the importance of being open and honest in all dealings.
• Make clients aware of the benefits of behaving in a civilised way.
• Keep financial and children’s issues separate.
• Ensure that consideration is given balancing the benefits any steps against the likely costs – financial or emotional.
• Inform clients of the options e.g. counselling, family therapy, round table negotiations, mediation, collaborative law and court proceedings.

Whether you prefer the old Code or the new version, the ethos remains the same. As members of Resolution, promotion of the Code will continue to influence the way we conduct family cases in our day to day practice. For more information visit www.resolution.org.uk.