MPs make a case against costly divorces

Solicitors do not inform their divorce clients about the cheaper alternatives to courtroom battles because it is not in their financial interest to do so.

That is the opinion of a group of MPs who have accused solicitors of "keeping quiet" about alternatives such as mediation because these are not so lucrative for them. In a new report, the Commons public accounts committee has suggested that mediation in divorces can be "quicker, cheaper and ... less acrimonious" than court cases and should be offered to couples more routinely.

Partners can meet with a divorce mediator, who is a neutral third party, to discuss terms of marital separation without having to go to court.

According to a report by the National Audit Office, just 29,000 of 149,000 disputes supported by legal aid attempted mediation between October 2004 and March 2006. In addition, it was also found that a third of divorcing couples questioned who are seeking legal aid said that they had never been informed abut mediation.

Committee chairman Edward Leigh said: "Mediation is often a swifter and less acrimonious path; and it is cheaper.

"It is important to avoid courtroom confrontations as far as possible, even if some avaricious lawyers are more than happy to cash in by keeping quiet about the mediation alternative."

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