Legal Briefing

In a weekly column, solicitor Juliet Phillips-James casts her expert eye over a range of legal matters and urges anyone with any questions or problems to come forward for help.

QSince separating from my ex-partner, she has stopped me seeing my son. I really miss him and I’m sure he is feeling the same. I really need to sort something as soon as possible, what options are available to me?

AThis is a position that many parents find themselves in and unfortunately there is not a one size fits all approach. We would need to explore your situation and find an approach that would work best for you. In order to gauge your situation, it would be helpful to know whether there were any reasons given for the reduction in contact; whether there are any court orders in place regarding contact; and until this reduction in contact, what frequency of contact did you have with your son?

There are several ways of resolving this issue, however, this will vary depending on your personal circumstances. Depending upon the relationship between you and your ex-partner, it may be something that can be resolved between yourselves. We would recommend putting forward your proposals for contact informally, in the hope that this can be resolved amicably.

If this is not possible, we could draft a letter to your ex-partner on your behalf, setting out your proposals for contact. This can set out arrangements for contact during school term time, school holidays and special occasions. Your partner can respond to these proposals or via their legal representative. If contact can be agreed upon via informal discussions, arrangements can be formalised through the courts via a consent order.

If this cannot be settled via these methods or you are wanting to escalate this matter as a matter of urgency, it is generally expected that parents attempt mediation through a MIAM, which stands for mediation information assessment meeting.

If mediation has been attempted, a court order may be sought to formalise arrangements and settle areas of dispute. In order to escalate this matter to the courts, a C100 form must be submitted. This will act as a method of formalising the division of contact that each parent will have, as well as where your son is to live. The court will take several details into consideration; however, the court will decide based on what they deem is best for your son.