Lunch and Learn about the Pathfinder Courts

This one-hour CPD Lunch and Learn session looks at the Ministry of Justice’s Pathfinder Courts programme, with a clear focus on its relationship to mediation and the lessons already emerging from the early pilot sites.

Pathfinder Courts were created to make family proceedings less adversarial and more child-centred, with mediation and early resolution built in as part of the model. This session will highlight:

• How Pathfinder Courts integrate mediation and out-of-court resolution into the family justice pathway.
• Lessons learned from the first Pathfinder pilots.
• What has worked well — and where challenges remain.
• The opportunities and implications for family mediators.
• How the approach could influence the future of family dispute resolution nationally.

Who should attend:

• Family mediators (legal aid and private).
• Trainee and newly accredited mediators.
• Family law professionals and advisors.
• Anyone interested in how court reform connects with mediation practice.

This is an opportunity to hear how Pathfinder Courts are evolving, to understand the lessons learned so far, and to consider how mediation can work hand in hand with the courts to support families more effectively.