Fathers' access battle boosted

Bristol fathers fighting for greater access to their children have welcomed a high court judge's attack on the legal system. Mr Justice Wall, who sits in the family division at the Royal Courts of Justice in London, voiced his concerns after dealing with a dispute involving a 12-year-old boy known only as 'O'. He called for a public debate on the issue of access after a father gave up a six-year fight to see his son.

In a written statement, Mr Justice Wall said: "The court system for dealing with contact disputes has serious faults. In particular, the court process is stressful for both parents and children, expensive, slow and adversarial. It tends to entrench parental attitudes rather than encouraging them to change." Jeff Skinner, spokesman for the newly-formed Bristol branch of Fathers 4 Justice, said the comments were promising and hoped they would inspire other prominent legal figures in Bristol to follow suit.

He said: "There are a number of people who have said they feel there needs to be a change in the legal system. I'm hoping the high court judge's comments will encourage them to come forward.
"Fathers 4 Justice in Bristol are fully confident that the law will change, and we will continue our campaign until it does.

The Bristol branch was set up to back the fight for better treatment of fathers in custody cases following divorces or separations.
The pressure group's first meeting this week attracted more than 30 fathers.

Mr Skinner said: "The group wants to see a change in the law but we are also here to support each other." The branch will meet again on Monday January 12 at the Beaufort Inn, Downend Road, Downend. For more information, call Jeff Skinner .