4: The Flexible Mediator

Author:
Rachael Blakey
Publication Date:
26 Feb 2025
Pages:
90–114
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.51952/9781529232981.ch004
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Chapter 4 shifts focus to the contemporary family justice system after the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 (LASPO). It first argues that a new type of family mediator – the flexible mediator – has emerged in light of two factors caused by LASPO: first, the withdrawal of legal support and, second, the subsequent diversification of mediation clientele. Section 2 considers the increasing demand after the LASPO reforms for mediators to become more flexible, but ultimately argues that this adaptability is not possible if the limited mediator archetype continues to underpin the dominant conceptualization of family mediation. A debate on whether mediators should be permitted to draft consent orders then reveals the stagnancy of the current discussions on mediation reform. However, evidence discussed in section 3 shows that mediators adopt a flexible archetype as they regularly go beyond their neutrality and provide more evaluative support. The chapter considers how mediator neutrality can be reimagined in order to openly recognize the flexible mediator type, before concluding that further research is needed to confirm these developments. Part II of the monograph is subsequently justified.

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Cover Rethinking Family Mediation
Rethinking Family Mediation
The Role of the Family Mediator in Contemporary Times
Author:
Rachael Blakey