Child Participation during Mediation between Divorcing or Divorced Parents

A divorce or a separation is often an emotionally tough period. Not only for the divorcing or separating couple, but also for the joint (minor) children. To ease the transition associated with a divorce or a separation, and to reduce the damage of parental conflict, pleas are being made for a higher focus on divorce mediation. The question that arises, then, is to what extent children should participate in mediation sessions in order for parents and mediators to make sure the child’s best interests are met. Although article 12 United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) prescribes the right of the child to participate, and even though the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child provides in General Comment No. 12 a guideline on how to concretise this right, previous research shows that the requirements of this guideline are not suitable for the practice of divorce mediators. Not surprisingly, various questions arise from the mediation practice: what is the child’s position during divorce mediation, and how should the child’s right to participate be concretised during divorce mediation? The aim of this study is therefore to further analyse, evaluate and offer proper solutions to the identified problem through empirical-legal research, comparative law research and normative research on the right to participate of minor children during divorce mediation.

Keywords:Parent-child relationships, Children's rights, Mediation, International and European human rights law, Right to Participate

Disciplines:Family law, Human rights law, Legal theory, jurisprudence and legal interpretation, Legal practice, lawyering and the legal profession

Project type:PhD project