Family law solicitors are spending too much time thinking about financial issues and trying to predict what judges will do if divorce cases go to litigation, and not enough time focusing on what is really in the best interests of their clients, a leading international lawyer in the field warned last week.

Speaking at the Resolution annual conference in Cheltenham, US lawyer Pauline Tesler - founder of the International Academy of Collaborative Practitioners - urged all family lawyers to adopt a collaborative approach to cases, including forming networks with other professionals such as mental health workers and childcare experts.


Ms Tesler argued that the current adversarial system often caused more conflict and gave clients unrealistic expectations. 'Lawyers are letting their clients down by leading them to believe that they are Snow White while their spouses are Hitler, and that the moon and stars are scarcely enough [when it comes to settlements],' she argued. She said clients are often less worried about money and more concerned about having an amicable relationship with their former spouse and retaining contact with friends and family, especially grandparents, where children are involved.


She said clients often feel upset, angry and powerless at certain stages of the process, to the extent that they are suffering from diminished responsibility, and called on solicitors to help by making referrals to other professionals and halting big decisions until the client is capable of making them. 'You need to wait until the client is having a good day - don't rush them,' she said.


Also speaking at the conference, Resolution chairwoman Kim Beatson said trainees who would previously have opted to join practices operating a mixed public/private funding structure were now flocking to where the money is. 'Even if we have gained the sympathy of the Legal Services Commission, the government has failed,' she argued. 'It has sent out a very clear message that there is no more money available.'