Legal Help With Contact Orders Via Court

[lsharp]

hi there
i have tried googling but nothing is very clear, basically i am a single parent on income support and i need to get a contact order in place and my childrens father is a so and so and thinks he lays down the rules etc. i have read it is £215 to apply to the court for a contact order but i cannot afford that sort of money, i no that legal aid for family law is only for under 18 and those involved in domestic violence so i wont get legal aid. i have found something called a remission fee and was wondering if anyone knows if i can get that to cover the cost for the contact order...i am already receiving legal aid for a criminal matter but they are completely different cases, any help is grateful as im at the end of my tethers with there father and need something in place legally asap!

[Buenchico]

The order is now known as a 'Child Arrangements Order'. Those on Income Support qualify for full remission of the court fee and thus pay nothing:
http://hmctsformfinder.justice.gov.uk/courtfinder/forms/ex160a-eng.pdf

Other than where there are special circumstances, you're required to attend a Mediation Information and Assessment Meeting before a court can consider your application.

You'll need this form
http://hmctsformfinder.justice.gov.uk/courtfinder/forms/c100-eng.pdf
together with these guidance notes
http://hmctsformfinder.justice.gov.uk/courtfinder/forms/cb007-eng.pdf

[lsharp]

thank you for your reply, i have contacted mediation 3 times and on all 3 of those attempts my ex (childrens father) has refused all 3 times in which i have now given up :(
so i will not have to pay? will there be any charges for any thing?
thanks

[Buenchico]

Ensure that you've got as much evidence as possible that your ex has refused to attend mediation. Submit it with your application form, together with an explanatory letter. (Your local CAB can probably help with that). You won't have to pay.

[lsharp]

thank u, silly question but how can i get proof he has refused mediation it was them that told me he refused...

[lsharp]

also mediation told me on my last attempt that ex had told them he will not do mediation as we r going through court for a criminal matter they then told me they cant go any further until the court case is closed

[Peter Pedant]

I had this in a CCJ case

you turn up at court, and say I am here because the other side refused mediation

[lsharp]

i have to fill out a long application form which says if u havnt tried mediation basically they wont do it theres no option to say the other side wont go

[Buenchico]

>>>how can i get proof he has refused mediation it was them that told me he refused

Ask the mediation team for an affidavit stating that you have sought mediation but it has not been possible due to the refusal of your ex.

[Peter Pedant]

actually in court we found ( in a CCJ ) it didnt make much difference ( ie wasnt dispositive )

but from a practical point of view there are all sorts of things there isnt a tick box for on a form that you find yourself discussing in a court case

[Peter Pedant]

// Ask the mediation team for an affidavit stating that you have sought mediation but it has not been possible due to the refusal of your ex//

we found if one side had refused mediation then the mediation team was Just Not Interested

[lsharp]

so the mediation people telling me that they cannot go any further anyway due to an ongoing court case is rubbish?

[Buenchico]

>>>the mediation people telling me that they cannot go any further anyway due to an ongoing court case is rubbish?

It certainly sounds odd but, without the details of the case, it's tricky for us to say.

[lsharp]

ill give them a ring in the morning thank u :)

[lsharp]

im basically up for common assault on him but the case is taking forever, im not prepared to wait months and months until mediation decide its ok to see us now or for him to just decline again, i need something legal in place for my kids sake

[themas]

"so the mediation people telling me that they cannot go any further anyway due to an ongoing court case is rubbish? "

No, its not rubbish. They've made 3 attempts to get him to mediation & he's refused. They can't go on & on trying - especially when he's said he's not going to do it. And who knows whether he'd come up with another excuse when the criminal case is settled?

Get the mediator to write to you confirming he refused 3 times to go to mediation & supply that to Court.