A quiet revolution?

• Family law is moving away from aggressive, lengthy correspondence toward more constructive, empathetic communication to reduce conflict and improve outcomes.
• Changes such as no-fault divorce, mandatory consideration of non-court dispute resolution, and the ‘One Couple, One Lawyer’ model are reshaping how family disputes are resolved, emphasising cooperation over confrontation.
• There’s growing emphasis on mental health, co-parenting, transparency, and judicial scrutiny of legal costs, all aimed at reducing harm and promoting dignity in family law proceedings.

Something has changed in the inboxes of family law practitioners recently. Gone are the long-winded letters that, at best, set out complex legal arguments in excessive detail and, at worst, were unedited regurgitations of a client’s instructions—often allowing abusive spouses to continue a ‘lawful’ campaign of harassment. While such correspondence still exists, it has thankfully become rare.

In a time when personal telephone calls are increasingly infrequent, the humble telephone has re-emerged as a powerful