The family court : comparative positions and proposals for the setting up of a Maltese counterpart

Abstract

Practising lawyers, adjudicators and even litigants have long realised that our existing court system is totally inadequate to deal with family disputes. It has become increasingly apparent that since familial disputes involve personal emotions, their settlement requires a different kind of approach. This implies that there needs to be taken into consideration the relevance of a range of services besides those customarily available to litigants in law cases. Attention to the special needs of children and the possibilities of conciliation in helping those involved in marital breakdown to reach agreements as to how their affairs should be ordered in the aftermath of separation must be taken into account. However, it was only in recent months that at long last this idea is being implemented with the creation of a Commission entrusted with writing a report on the setting up of a Family Court. This thesis justifies the concept of a unified Family Court and its relevance to a community addressing the legal and social problems of families and children in a fair and effective fashion. It compares the Family Courts that have been constituted in other countries and addresses the issues involved by examining in depth the ideal characteristics of the Family Court- a Court which must • be essentially a court of justice which is presided over by specialised judges; • have integrated jurisdiction in all matters inherent to family law; • be provided with specialised support services which are staffed with counsellors, social workers and other experts who would co-operate closely with the judges to provide information and to encourage communication between potential litigants; and •be able to function under procedure better adapted to new behavioural science techniques and to the specific nature of family problems. The ultimate aim of the thesis is to come up with concrete recommendations which should be incorporated within the Maltese Family Court system regarding its jurisdiction, functions, structure, accomodation and procedure.