The Development of Family Mediation Services in Hong Kong: Review of an Evaluation Study

Abstract

This article evaluates a three‐year Family Mediation Pilot Scheme introduced in Hong Kong in the year 2000. The findings of that scheme showed that users of the service generally considered that their time and money were saved and that mediation was effective in helping them to reach solutions on matters of dispute. On the basis of these findings, a framework covering the major parameters of family mediation services was developed. This noted that a service model which best suits Hong Kong is one whereby court‐based and community‐based services coexist, allowing couples to join the relevant service at any point during the divorce process. It should also be a service that is pluralistic and diverse in terms of the service and professional backgrounds of the mediators, thereby meeting the needs of a diverse clientele. Finally, it should offer an approach in which couples proceed to litigation only when mediation has been unsuccessfully attempted.

Keywords:

• family mediation
• evaluation
• Hong Kong

Acknowledgements

This article is based on the Final Report on Evaluation Study on The Pilot Scheme on Family Mediation 2004, which resulted from a research project funded by the Judiciary of the Hong Kong Special Administration Region between 2000 and 2004. The authors wish to express their gratitude to the Judiciary for their support and openness through the entire research process, and to Professor Lee Ming‐kwan, who headed this project between 2000 and 2002, for his valuable input to this evaluation study.

Notes

1. See Legal Aid Departmental homepage at http://www.lad.gov.hk/annual_rpt/appendix1.html. Accessed 3 July 2007.