The role of the law in settling family disputes has been a matter o particular debate over the past 25 years. In keeping with the genera public perception, the media have been largely critical about the role o lawyers in family law matters, sustaining a general lack of confidence in the legal profession, and a more specific feeling that in family matters lawyers aggravate conflict or even represent a female conspiracy. The climate in which family lawyers practise in England and Wales is therefore a harsh one
