The latest figures from the Ministry of Justice statistics for the family courts show that in the third quarter of 2019, the average time for a care or supervision case to reach first disposal was 33 weeks, an increase of three weeks from the same July-September period in 2018.
In a decrease of 10% on that period in 2018, only 42% of cases were disposed of within 26 weeks.
Contrary to care proceedings, the average time for divorces, moving from petition to decree nisi and decree absolute, actually decreased by one and two weeks respectively compared to the same quarter in 2018, with figures of 30 weeks and 54 weeks being the respective mean averages. The median figures of 23 weeks (decree nisi) and 39 weeks (decree absolute) show a similar decrease.
In July-September 2019 there were 29,531 divorce petitions, a decrease of 3% on the same period for 2018. Digital petitions accounted for 39% of these. Decrees absolute saw an increase of 38% for the same period against the equivalent in 2018, with 29,325 decrees granted.
The family courts saw 67,431 cases started in the period, a rise of 1% against July-September 2018, and this was put down to a 23% rise in domestic violence case starts as well as an increase in Private law (5%) and Public law (1%) cases.
The figures show a 23% increase in domestic violence remedy order applications compared to the period in 2018, while the number of those same orders made increased by 18%.
Regarding adoption, the number of applications decreased while the number of orders increased. There were 1,174 adoption applications in the period July-September 2019, down 6% on the 2018 equivalent. The number of adoption orders increased by 8% to 1,267.
Applications relating to deprivation of liberty saw an increase of 20% to 1,347 in the third quarter of 2019 compared to the same in 2018, but these figures were also at a similar level to a previous quarter. Orders relating to deprivation of liberty decreased by 5% compared to the same period last year.
About The Family Mediation Practice
The Family Mediation Practice is a team of independent family mediators who help divorcing and separating couples to come to an agreement rather than fighting things out in the courts.
Depending on your circumstances, legal aid could be available to fund your family mediation.
Contact The Family Mediation Practice
You can contact any of our independent family mediators direct by calling 0333 567 0377. You can also send a confidential message by clicking here.
