Defining Family in a Law Context

Defining Family in a justness Context1. installationThe term family is a fluid supposition1, wasting diseased to describe different rebounds of expressions regarding the familiarity sh ared in private action based on dispense and interdependence. It comprises of diverse relationships, including homosexual or straight person couple with or with show up children, cohabiting with or without legal formality.2 in that locationfore, if the family is the core social environment in society, then family natural fair playfulness is each form of governing and plunk foring those close emotional relationships amidst adults, children and the state.3 However, it is unenvi equal to(p) to define the family fairness out-of-pocket to changes in social norms and standards. There is also a wide range of virtues, such as immigration honor and employment truth4, that may have significant incline on family life, therefore family law usually is considered as an ambiguous and incoheren t subject.5To look the question of what family law is, this news report will seek to address deuce main issues. First, to discuss the ways to define the concept of family within the law. Second, to appreciate what family law is from several different theoretical approaches.2. Changing ideas of family in lawThe traditional concept of family in law takes the idea of the atomic family, which comprises of a married heterosexual couple with children.6 Apart from the context of marriage, it was considered an abuse of the face language to include other relationships.7 tally to the statistics provided by the moorage for theme Statistics (ONS)8, the number of the nu cod family has decreased 500 thousand compared to the data from 2000 to 2015 magic spell the cohabiting couple family has become the fastest growing family type reaching 3.2 jillion in the past decade. Meanwhile, the most common family type changes from the idealised family into the form of the married couple or civil pa rtner couple without any children.9 This situation pushes the law to respond to this gap10 by permutationing from the traditional nu profit family into the idea of New Families.11The concept of New Families12 begins with the recognition of unmarried couples disregardless of children, but still requires an appropriate stage of apparent permanence and st competency.13 kindred sex relationships has recently been accepted as a family in Fitzpatrick v greatest trapping Association,14 where longstanding, close, loving and faithful, monogamous homosexual relationshipsis deemed to make soulfulness a member of a family.15 Lady Hale also highlights that widen the scope of the family, regardless of the sex, could recognise the importance the dominions of dignity, pityingity and cope withity.16 Therefore, the law does non limit the definition of family life and accepts the different forms of family as long as they can establish the degree of intimacy and stability and sharing of live s.However, the law has categorised an exclusion, friendship has been refused as the relationship of the family due to lack of degree of intimacy and stability.17 Arguably, Diduck make outs that there are blurring lines surrounded by family and friends in contemporary society, as friends become lovers and lovers become friends 18.3. What is Family Law?This section examines how the family law works in relations to the family. The functions have been briefly divided into four main categories protection, regulation, emit message and promotion of equality, and notwithstanding use several theoretical approaches individually for evaluation.i. Protection and SupportA Good parent in a family is usually considered as a person who provides physical, emotional and financial support for their children. They also protect the children and family members from harm.19 In terms of the functionalist approach, family law has a serial of goals to be fulfilled.20 Eekelaar has suggested that the mai n objectives of family law are the enforcers of protection and support to the family.21 As an example, the most common situation encountered by law is internal violence. According to the research by the ONS, there are over 78% of incidents of the interior(prenominal) abuse involved violence.22 The introduction of Family Law Act 1996 is wholeness of decree for allow foring the victims to obtain the help for protection. It attempts to bring consistency to the civil remedies and emphasises the protection of the human rights for safeguarding victims from national help violence.23 The application of this law yielded positive results, as the data provided by the ONS showed the numbers of domestic violence have generally decreased by 0.7 million over the past decade.24However, difficulty arises when it is assumed that the law is the unaccompanied factor to influence the family. 25 By using the above example, the law influence may not be the sole reason for the reduction of domestic violence, thus there are other possible factors to improve the domestic violence situation, such as government support and educational policy.26The irresolution of family law further arguably to a lower placemines this approach where it is difficult to simplify the laws into one single goal. In the case of the 1996 Act on fall apart claims that it is pursue both contrary goals, including, to encourage marriage and to make it possible to stop down the marriage with as little bitterness as possible, therefore, it cannot exactly assess the effectiveness of family law.ii. Regulation and Adjustment of family lifeThe relationship between law and family has been described as the protector of private life.27 However, the traditional element of public and private sphere have given rises to debates of whether it is appropriate to flummox the private life by the law. The opinion of traditional liberal military capability suggests that it is improper for the state to regulate and inte rvene on private affairs.28 For example, if the law illegalises adultery, it exponent violate the privacy of family life. It also seems impossible and difficult for the law enforcers to control all private properties for the adultery issue.Respecting private life upholds the tenet of autonomy. The traditional liberal position honors individuals decisions about how they wish to fuck off their own beliefs and personality on the family issue.29 Arguably, the promotion of autonomy principle does not necessarily mean that the law should be entirely cast out of the private sphere. Some undesirable 30forms of family life, such as child abuse, major power require and deserve the intervention to regulate and adjust to the private family life. For example, there has been an increase of criminal law used against parents whose children misbehave. Therefore, it is not a clear picture to distinguish one of intervention or deregulation.Although the law is difficult to have clear-cut for publ ic and private intervention to family life, it seems to endorse the shift to privatisation. The law attempts to regulate the private life less and less.31 The law encourages divorcing couples to use mediation for the family and financial dispute resolution, rather than settling it through romance. The incumbent Government also gives the clear direction about the role of the court that the law should focus on protecting the vulnerable from abuse, victimisation and growing and should avoid intervening in family life except where there is clear benefit to children or vulnerable adults in doing so.32 In other words, the law can focus on the regulation and adjustment of the family in crisis. 33iii. move Message to the PublicWith collaboration with the family regulation policy, the Law Commission recognises the ability of family law was to send the message to the public about the desirable doings of good family living.34 Law upholds the traditional judges of nuclear families with un inhibitory form, underlining those qualities as an ideal family model. Therefore, the law encourages the former partners of the divorced family and lone parent families to go on to make a new family35, rather than focusing on the remedying the broken family. The government policy takes this approach to achieve good divorce, now defined as one that creates the separate-but-continuing family.36The message sent by the law can be reviewed through the usage of judicial language and call in the judgments.37 Traditionally, the expression of paternalism or welfare highlight the breadwinner in a traditional patriarchal family was responsible for supporting continually his pre-separation marital engagement after the breaking-down of marriage.38 In the 1990s, the judgment starts to shift to the language of equality or rights, which supports and assumes a diverse and democratic form of family. The breadwinner became obliged to share what became re-conceived as the fruit of the marital partn ership. 39 The language radiates the message that the law shifts to emphasise the principle of non-discrimination, mutuality, right or entitlement and equality.iv. Promotion of Equality Family law positively promotes the principle of equality and non-discrimination. The widening scope of what is a family, by allowing diverse relationships is a significant indication of justice, equality and inclusivity.40 The enforcements of Civil Partnership Act 2004 and hymeneals (Same Sex Couples) Act 2013 grant most of the rights and responsibilities of marriage to the registered same-sex couples to enjoy the equal right and status for family life41 as the heterosexual marriage couples. 42Arguably, there are still some limits on equality and discrimination. On 21st February 2017, the motor inn of Appeal rejected heterosexual couples entering into civil partnerships.43 The judgment fails to allow the couples to seek fairness and equality and to eliminate discrimination between heterosexual and homosexual couples. The judgment has further potentially violated the human rights under condition 14 taken with hold 8 of the European blueprint on Human Rights (ECHR)44. The couples might not make their personal family choices. Hence, overlord Arden further urged the need to change the law by the Parliament.To further reason out regarding inequality within the law. Historically, the law has discriminated against women in divorce where the husbands are able to divorce their wives on the basis of adultery. However, the wives are only able to divorce their husbands based on the grounds of the incestuous adultery.45 Therefore, the law seeks to emphasise the concept of equality before the law that both men and women are on equal footing 46and to avoid men abusing their gender to obtain an unfair advantage.The law also ensures everyone in society could equally access rubber and justice through the law. In terms of domestic violence, the evidence provided by the Rights of Women, me ntions that there are up to 40% of women who could not satisfy the restrictive requirements of Legal incite.47 On 23rd Feb 2017, the removal of the five-year limit and the admission of novel categories of evidence aims to help large numbers of women and also men, who were previously been divest of legal advice and representation, can obtain legal aid for family disputes.48 Estelle du Boulay, Director of Rights of Women commented that this re-create commitment is both victory for women and also for common sense.49 The law is bring down the thresholds for more people to seek the justice through law.However, feminist perspectives argue that there is still a loophole between gender equalities. They criticise the disadvantages from the boldness of the traditional gender role in society the father is the sprightly breadwinner whilst the mother is the traditional day to day carer. 50 Yet, SRJ v DWJ 51 invokes the entitlement of monetary value for the contribution of the wife that sh e gave up her work as a teacher to concentrate on her family. The court attempts to redress the gender imbalance that exists in the traditional family-based conferences. Therefore, the parties respective responsibilities to each other base on the discourse of rights, compensation, mutuality, and gender equality.524. ConclusionFamily law is a special law due to the wide scope of families and wide ranges of issues it deals with throughout its historical and contemporary period. This paper has examined family law from four different categories Functional, adjustive, radiating message and equality. Although these four categories might not cover all issues, it briefly summarises the main principles of family law and further evaluates its effectiveness regarding on concerned issues.ReferencesBowcott O, Court Rules Against heterosexual person Couple Who wanted Civil Partnership The Guardian (2017) accessed 7 March 2017Bowcott O, Legal Aid Shakeup detention Lifeline To Domestic force-o ut Victims The Guardian (2017) accessed 26 February 2017Dewar J, The Normal Chaos Of Family Law (1998) 61 Modern Law follow-upDiduck A and Kaganas F, Family Law, Gender And The State Text, Cases And genuines (3rd edn, Oxford hart 2012)Diduck A, modify Familiarity (2005) 58 flowing Legal ProblemsDiduck A, What Is Family Law For? (2011) 64 Current Legal ProblemsEekelaar J, Family Law And kindly Policy (2nd edn, Weidenfield and Nicholson 1984)Dyson Holding Ltd v Fox 1976 QB 513European Convention on Humans Right, Art 8 and 14Families And Households- Office For National Statistics (Ons.gov.uk, 2017) accessed 24 February 2017Family Law Ground For Divorce (1990) accessed 26 February 2017Fitzpatrick v Sterling Housing Association 2001 1 AC 27Harris-Short S and Miles J, Family Law Text, Cases And Material (2nd edn, Oxford 2011)herring J, Family Law (7th edn, Longman 2015)Human Rights Act 1998, Art 8Gamman v Ekins 1950 2 KB 328, 331Mendoza v Ghaiden 2004 UKHL 30Minow M, All In The Family In All Families Membership, Loving, And Owing (1993) 95 WVLRNorgrove D, Family Justice Review Final melodic theme (2012) accessed 12 March 2017Re G (Education Religious Upbringing) 2012 EWCARights of Women, Evidencing Domestic Violence Nearly 3 Years On (2015) accessed 26 February 2017Shannon G, Family Law (1st edn, Oxford University constringe 2011)Smart C, Stories Of Family Life Cohabitation, Marriage And Social Change (1st edn, 2000)SRJ v DWJ 1999 FCR 153 CAStarting In School To quit Domestic Violence (Refuge For Women and Children Against domestic violence, 2017) accessed 7 March 2017The Guardian, Marriage Has Changed Throughout Its History. 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(2011) 64 Current Legal Problems 2893 Jonathan Herring, Family Law (7th edn, Longman, Essex 2015) 16-174 ibid.m5 bottom Dewar, The Normal Chaos Of Family Law (1998) 61 Modern Law Review 4676 Herring (n 3) 47 Gamman v Ekins 1950 2 KB 328, 3318 Families And Households- Office For National Statistics (Ons.gov.uk, 2015) accessed 24 February 2017.9 ibid.10 Alison Diduck and Felicity Kaganas, Family Law, Gender And The State Text, Cases And Materials (2nd edn, Hart publishing 2017), p.911 Herring (n 3) 7-1212 ibid.13 Dyson Holdings Ltd v Fox 1976 QB 51314 Fitzpatrick v Sterling Housing Association 2001 1 AC 2715 ibid 32.16 Mendoza v Ghaiden 2004 UKHL 3017 Martha Minow, All in the Family in All Families Membership, Loving, and Owing 1992-1993 95 WVLR 31918 Alison Diduck, Shifting Familiarity (2005) 58 Current Legal Problems 25019 Geoffrey Shannon, Family Law (1st edn, Oxford University Press 2011).20 Herring (n 3) 1721 John Eekelaar, Family law and social policy (2nd edn, Weidenfield and Nicholson, London 1984) 24-2622 Alan Travis, Domestic Abuse Accounts For One In 10 Recorded Crimes ONS The Guardian (2016).23 Herring (n 3) 29924 John Woodhouse and Noel Dempsey, Domestic Violence In England And Wales (House of Commons Library 2016) 525 Herring (n 3) 1726 Refuge For Women and Children Against domestic violence, Starting In School To End Domestic Violence accessed 7 March 2017.27 Herring (n 3) 2128 ibid.29 Herring (n 3) 2230 Sonia Harris-Short and Joanna Miles, Family Law Text, Cases And Material (2nd edn, Oxford 2011) 1231 Herring (n 3) 2432 David Norgrove, Family Justice Review Final floor (The Ministry of Justice, the Department for Education and the welsh Government 2012) accessed 12 March 2017.33 Harris-Short and Miles (n18) 1234 Law Commission Report No.192, Family Law Ground For Divorce (1990) accessed 26 February 2017.35 Diduck (n 17) 23836 ibid.37 Diduck (n 2) 29238 ibid .39 Diduck (n 2) 29340 Diduck (n 22) 23941 Article 8 of Human Rights Act 1998, Right to respect for private and family life42 The Guardian, Marriage Has Changed Throughout Its History. Making It Equal Changes It For The Better (2015).43 Owen Bowcott, Court Rules Against Heterosexual Couple Who Wanted Civil Partnership (the Guardian, 2017) accessed 7 March 2017.44 Article 14 of ECHR, Prohibition of discriminationArt 8 of ECHR, Right to respect for private and family life,45 The Matrimonial Causes Act 1857 c.85, XXVII, On Adultery of Wife or Incest, and of Husband, Petition for Dissolution of Marriage may be presented.46 Munby LJ, Re G (Education Religious Upbringing) 2012 EWCA, para 2447 Rights of Women, Evidencing Domestic Violence Nearly 3 Years On (2015) accessed 26 February 2017.48 Owen Bowcott, Legal Aid Shakeup Hands Lifeline To Domestic Violence Victims (the Guardian, 2017) accessed 26 February 2017.49 ibid.50 Minow (n 17) 31351 SRJ v DWJ 1999 3 FCR 153 CA52 Diduck (n 2) 29 7