National Alternative Dispute Resolution Advisory Council - Part 1

LETTER OF ADVICE TO THE ATTORNEY-GENERAL ON PARENTING PLANS PART 1

16 MARCH 2000

To View Part 2 of Letter: Part 2

To View Part 3 of Letter: Part 3

To View Part 4 of Letter: Part 4

THE FAMILY LAW COUNCIL

The Family Law Council is a statutory authority which was established by section 115 of the Family Law Act 1975. The functions of Council are set out in sub-section 115(3) of the Act which states:

It is the function of the Council to advise and make recommendations to the Attorney-General, either of its own motion or upon request made to it by the Attorney-General, concerning -

the working of this Act and other legislation relating to family law;
the working of legal aid in relation to family law; and
any other matters relating to family law.

The first Council was appointed in November 1976. Funding for the Council is provided through the Commonwealth Attorney-General's Department, and the Council is supported by a Secretariat located within the Family Law and Legal Assistance Division of the Department.

THE NATIONAL ALTERNATIVE DISPUTE RESOLUTION ADVISORY COUNCIL

The National Alternative Dispute Resolution Advisory Council (NADRAC) is an independent advisory council charged with providing the Attorney-General with coordinated and consistent policy advice on the development of high quality, economic and efficient ways of resolving disputes without the need for a judicial decision.

The issues on which NADRAC advises include the following:

minimum standards for the provision of alternative dispute resolution services;
minimum training and qualification requirements for alternative dispute resolution practitioners, including the need, if any, for registration and accreditation of practitioners and dispute resolution organisations;
appropriate professional disciplinary mechanisms;
the suitability of alternative dispute resolution processes for particular client groups and for particular types of disputes;
the quality, effectiveness and accountability of Commonwealth alternative dispute resolution programs;
ongoing evaluation of the quality, integrity, accountability and accessibility of alternative dispute resolution services and programs;
programs to enhance community and business awareness of the availability, and benefits, of alternative dispute resolution services;
the need for data collection and research concerning alternative dispute resolution and the most cost-effective methods of meeting that need; and
the desirability and implications of the use of alternative dispute resolution processes to manage case flows within courts and tribunals.

NADRAC was formed in October 1995. It is a non-statutory body appointed by the Attorney-General. Funding for NADRAC is provided through the Commonwealth Attorney-General's Department, and is supported by a Secretariat located within the Civil Justice Division of the Department.

THE PARENTING PLANS COMMITTEE

Members of the Councils' Parenting Plans Committee were:
The Hon Justice Richard Chisholm Convenor
Dr Carole Brown *
Mr Fabian Dixon
Ms Susan Gribben
Ms Bernadette Rogers
Mr Joe Piotrowski *
Mr Brendan MacDowell (Secretariat)
* Dr Brown replaced Mr Piotrowski on the Committee in October 1999.
The Committee also wishes to thank Ms Allison Wood, formerly of NADRAC's Secretariat, for her assistance to the Committee.

RECOMMENDATIONS

Recommendation 1 Amendment of the Family Law Act 1975
Division 4 of Part VII of the Act be amended to:

encourage the use of parenting plans, and the use of consent orders where a party requires an element or elements of the plan to be enforceable; and
repeal the registration provisions.

Recommendation 2 Encouragement of an integrated package
The use of an integrated parenting plans/consent orders package be encouraged through information and education through existing funded services, such as counselling and mediation services, legal aid bodies and community legal services and through other appropriate means, for example, clinical legal education.

Recommendation 3 Review of existing kits
To assist parties to develop parenting plans (and obtain consent orders, if required), the existing kits and information be reviewed and modified to reflect the above recommended approach.