Opening the Doors: Creating an Accessible Family Justice System

In this article, Ben Rosie argues that the family justice system remains too complex and inaccessible for the families it serves. There is a need for clearer communication, more inclusive practices, and a culture that enables families to understand and participate meaningfully in decisions that shape their lives.

For many families, involvement in the family court is often their first interaction with the legal system and one of the most distressing experiences they will ever face. Public law proceedings are not abstract legal exercises, they involve real world consequences, with children being removed, families being separated, and lives being permanently changed. Family court is by its nature, an adversarial place, and can be intimidating and difficult to navigate. The legal language can be impenetrable for people, and families often find that their voices are the last to be heard, leading to feeling as though discussions are taking place about them rather than with them.

It is essential that we make the family justice system more accessible for those most affected by it. The court process ought to provide clarity and fairness when too often it leaves children and families feeling distressed and disengaged.

One of the chief reasons for this is that family court is largely designed around professionals, and process, rather than those whose lives its decisions shape. Legal language in bundles, statements and judgments is complex, and processes are rarely explained in plain terms. For those unfamiliar with the legal system, this can be overwhelming and alienating, leaving families feeling confused, powerless, and excluded from decisions about their own lives.

There are, however, encouraging signs of progress. Guidance supporting judges to write to children, and initiatives such as the Family Law Language Project, reflect a growing recognition that court communication should be understandable to the people it affects. These developments demonstrate what can be achieved when accessibility and humanity are treated as priorities.

The challenge is to ensure such practice becomes standard rather than exceptional. Clear, plain-English judgments, short summaries alongside full decisions, and opportunities for solicitors to talk through outcomes with families could greatly improve understanding. Supporting families to prepare for proceedings and ensuring they know what services and help are available afterwards would also strengthen engagement and help to reduce recurrence.

Many families describe experiencing the family justice system as something that happens to them rather than with them.

Decisions that profoundly affect their lives can feel distant and opaque, leaving parents and children with little sense of involvement or understanding. It is essential that children and parent’s voices are properly heard and considered during proceedings.

A system that truly values fairness must actively create space for families to participate meaningfully, not simply through solicitors or barristers instead, families must be supported to engage themselves and have their voices heard directly.

Family courts will always deal with complex and painful issues and families will continue to be distressed by decisions made and children will continue to be placed in care. But with thoughtful changes to language, process and culture, they can become places where families feel informed, respected and better able to move forward with clarity and confidence.

For more information on the DFJ Trailblazers Programme see here. Please get in touch with Ben at ben.rosie@mutualventures.co.uk if you would like to talk further about the themes covered in this article.