Families walked through court process
Support group Comm(on)Unity held a get-together for members at Pinecreek Restaurant and Farmstall at the weekend, where family attorney Roxanne Vickers discussed the state of EL’s family courts.
“Anyone who’s dealt with the system would know that it’s hard and not nice. It’s difficult down at court, there’s nobody there to help you,” Vickers said. “What’s happened in East London is the older attorneys no longer practice in family court. They’ll do a hight court divorce but they’re not going to go down with you to maintenance court or children’s court.
“They don’t know how those courts operate because they’re new.”
Vickers said that senior attorneys often end up sending their candidate attorneys in their place. Since candidate attorneys often lack experience, this can have a detrimental effect on a case. It was this lack of support in family court that motivated Vickers and her sister to strike out on their own.
“We know that the people who need these services don’t have the cash. We’re women in society. We don’t earn a lot of money and we know [clients] don’t either,” she said.
“There are so many people who are just trying to do it alone. It's heartbreaking.”
Flynn added:“We thank the sponsors that made the event possible: BV Law, Nachwelt Projects, Pinecreek Restaurant and Farmstall, Exec Financial Solutions (EFS), MapeQ, Love-in-a-Basket, Epikanini Promotions, and Awkward Moments and Cristin Flynn Communications who worked together on branding, communications and online.”
Comm(on)Unity is a support group aimed at providing comfort and support to families and parents going through tough times such as divorce, single-parent homes, parents who are battling the legal system or family court, or those looking for help caring for special needs children.
- To contact Vickers, call 043-735-4555 or email roxanne@bvlaw.co.za
- For details on Comm(on)Unity, WhatsApp 074-827-6131 or email info@common-unity.co.za