Page 18 - Meeting with Children Book

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Since writing the article we have developed a third
scale related to the child/youth’s readiness to share
his/her concerns with their parents; The Child and
Youth Readiness Scale is introduced in this book on
page 248.

COMPLEXITY AND THE CHILD VOICE

A question that occupies the minds of many family
mediators is; should any meeting with a child occur
when the case has been assessed as a high-risk family
mediation?

The Australian Family Law Regulations (2008)
identifies high-risk family dispute resolution as cases
where the ability of the parties to negotiate freely is
limited due to:

a) A history of family violence among the
parties

b) The safety of the parties is compromised

c) The bargaining power of the parties is not
equal

d) There is a risk that a child may suffer abuse

e) The emotional, psychological and physical
health of each party is not balanced
Family Law (Family Dispute Resolution) Regulations 2008
Regulation 25(2). Australia

While the Australian regulations have sought to define
high risk, complexity exists in all jurisdictions and in all