Mental health and family law

Over recent years, awareness of mental health and the importance of understanding it, has grown exponentially. As family law is an inherently personal area of law, mental health has increasingly played a role in family law cases, and it is something that our Family lawyers at Blake Morgan have a wealth of experience in.

Mental health in children cases

In children cases, the mental wellbeing of a child will be an important consideration of the court when making any decisions about the child, whether that be how their mental health will be affected by a change in contact arrangements, or whether the child has any mental health diagnoses which need to be taken into account and may be disproportionately affected by any orders of the court.

In addition, understanding mental health conditions and how they can be managed is also crucially important when looking at a parent’s ability to look after their child. It is now widely understood that simply having a mental health condition does not mean that you cannot look after your child, however it is important to understand that a parent must be committed to the treatment and management of their condition and a court will want to know how and if a parent’s mental health will affect their ability to care for their child.

Finding the best way to resolve matters

Family law often includes cases where domestic abuse has taken place. Such abuse can lead to mental health conditions such as PTSD or anxiety, and we understand that court proceedings may trigger a worsening in these conditions. There are several things that we as family lawyers can ensure is put in place to help reduce the risk of this occurring, including asking the court to provide screens and separate waiting rooms to ensure that victims do not have to encounter their abuser. In addition, counselling or any similar therapeutic support can be signposted.

Even for those clients who have not experienced domestic abuse, we as family lawyers know that entering into court proceedings is often an extremely stressful time. It is therefore important for us to have an ongoing dialogue with our clients and that our clients feel able to share how they are feeling with us. We are able to signpost clients to resources and support in order to help cope with any stress and anxiety that stems from the court process. At Blake Morgan it is very important to us that our clients know that they are not alone in this process and that there is always help at hand.

How can Blake Morgan help?

Mental health is a complicated issue that can significantly impact family law cases. This is why multiple members of the Family team at Blake Morgan are qualified Mental Health First Aiders. If any of the issues raised in this article resonate with you and you would like supportive advice, please do get in touch.