Mediation Information and Assessment Meeting (MIAM) meaning

Procedural Guide: Applications for Child Arrangements Orders under section 8 Children Act 1989 This Procedural Guide outlines the procedural steps for applying under section 8 of the Children Act 1989 (ChA 1989) for a child arrangements order (CAO). It covers eligibility to apply, pre-action obligations including attendance at a mediation information and assessment meeting (MIAM), the court’s guiding principles, and provisions for non-court dispute resolution (NCDR). It also addresses service requirements and the criteria for without notice (ex parte) applications. Allocation, gatekeeping and safeguarding processes are explained, together with what may occur at the first hearing dispute resolution appointment (FHDRA) and the dispute resolution appointment (DRA), as well as the approach to fact-finding hearings, vulnerable witnesses and the final hearing. A CAO is one of the orders available to the court under ChA 1989, s 8. It is an order concerning: with whom a child is to live, spend time or otherwise have contact, and when a child is to live, spend time or...

Procedure—Schedule 1 to the Children Act 1989 Unless an application seeks only periodical payments (ie no capital orders at all), an application under Schedule 1 to the Children Act 1989 (ChA 1989) will proceed in accordance with the standard procedure. In the same way, where a party applies to vary an existing order, the fast-track route is available only where the variation concerns a periodical payments order and no form of capitalisation is requested. See Practice Note: Fast-track (shortened) financial remedy procedure. An application under ChA 1989, Sch 1 is issued in the Family Court and is allocated to a district judge. See Practice Notes: Procedure—Schedule 1 to the Children Act 1989 and Issuing financial proceedings in Form A (standard procedure). This Procedural Guide is primarily focused on applications proceeding under the standard procedure. The pre-action protocol and the overriding objective contained in the Family Procedure Rules 2010 (FPR 2010) apply to applications under ChA 1989, Sch 1—see Practice Note: Financial proceedings—pre-application requirements—Pre-application protocol (FPR 2010, PD...

Stop Press: On 31 March 2026, Sir Andrew McFarlane, President of the Family Division, published consolidated guidance on allocation and gatekeeping in children proceedings before the Family Court, to take effect on 5 May 2026. This supplants the 2014 public and private law guidance, creating a single scheme for allocation across all children cases. It codifies the function of gatekeeping teams, maps allocation choices to contemporary procedural routes (including Child Focused Courts), and reaffirms the fundamentals of judicial continuity, proportionality, and the efficient deployment of judicial resources; see News Analysis: Consolidated allocation and gatekeeping guidance for children proceedings issued. This Practice Note is being revised to incorporate the President’s guidance. It sets out how to seek an order under section 8 of the Children Act 1989 (ChA 1989)—namely a child arrangements order (CAO), a specific issue order, or a prohibited steps order—and provides direction on the requirement to attend a mediation information and assessment meeting (MIAM)...

This Practice Note introduces non-court dispute resolution (NCDR) (previously referred to as alternative dispute resolution (ADR)). It outlines the obligation to consider non-court ways of settling family disputes under the Family Procedure Rules 2010 (FPR 2010), SI 2010/2955. This includes the duty to attend a family mediation information and assessment meeting (MIAM) and recognition of the pre-application protocols for financial remedy and private children proceedings. It also explains when the court may adjourn proceedings to allow the parties to undertake NCDR... Pre-application requirements FPR 2010, SI 2010/2955, Pt 3, read alongside FPR 2010, PD 3A, requires all prospective applicants to attend a MIAM before issuing specified applications for a court order in relevant family proceedings, unless an exemption applies. At every stage, the court must assess whether NCDR is suitable and has a general power to adjourn so that NCDR can be attempted, including attendance at a MIAM to consider family mediation and other NCDR options...

This toolkit It consolidates various materials and papers linked to the pre-application requirements in family proceedings and the obligation to consider non-court dispute resolution (NCDR). It provides directions to provisions within the Family Procedure Rules 2010 (FPR 2010) and to the pre-application protocols that the court expects parties to follow before issuing private law proceedings concerning children under the Children Act 1989, as well as financial proceedings. It further points to Lexis+® UK Practice Notes, precedents, forms and cases designed to support practitioners when evaluating NCDR. To encourage increased mediation information and assessment meeting (MIAM) attendance and to promote earlier resolution of private law proceedings relating to children and financial remedy proceedings, FPR 2010, SI 2010/2955, Pt 3, together with FPR 2010, PD 3A, were amended by the Family Procedure (Amendment No 2) Rules 2023, SI 2023/1324 and by the sixth Practice Direction update of 2023, taking effect on 29 April 2024. In addition, FPR 2010, SI 2010/2955, Pt 28 was revised in relation to costs, and FPR 2010,...

This note offers general guidance for grandparents on applying for a child arrangements order that sets out contact with grandchildren. Your family solicitor can give advice specific to your situation. What can I do if I am not allowed to spend time with my grandchildren? If the parents’ relationship breaks down, it is hoped arrangements can still be agreed so the children keep spending time with their grandparents. In such circumstances, grandparents often play a vital part in their grandchildren’s lives. Sometimes issues can be settled through mediation or other out-of-court resolution. Mediation may avoid costly legal proceedings, which can be very stressful. Before applying for an order to spend time with your grandchildren (a child arrangements order, or CAO), the rules require you to attend a meeting with a mediator to assess whether mediation is suitable instead of court. This is called a mediation information and assessment meeting (a MIAM)...

This document offers general guidance on applying to the court for maintenance on divorce or the dissolution of a civil partnership. Your family lawyer can provide tailored advice based on your circumstances and will be able to address your specific situation. Who can apply for maintenance? Either spouse or civil partner may apply to the court for a spousal or civil partner maintenance order, also referred to as a periodical payments order. The party making the application is the applicant; the other party is the respondent respectively. Save in certain specified situations, a prospective applicant must consider with a mediator whether the dispute could be resolved by non-court dispute resolution. All applicants must meet these requirements before starting proceedings unless a stated exception applies, and the court will expect any respondent to have attended a mediation information and assessment meeting (MIAM) beforehand, as part of the process. What happens when the application is received by the court? When either party issues an application, the court automatically...

Dear [ client name ] Mediation Information and Assessment Meeting (MIAM) Before submitting certain family applications, the rules of court require an applicant to attend a Mediation Information and Assessment Meeting (MIAM). At this meeting, you and a mediator will explore whether the dispute could be managed without using the court process. The mediator will set out the potential benefits of various non-court dispute resolution options. Mediation is confidential. No party may inform the court about what was discussed during mediation, nor the reasons why an agreement was not achieved. In most family proceedings, the court expects applicants to satisfy this requirement before starting a case, save in specific situations (see Potential MIAM exemptions below). While the duty to attend a MIAM does not extend to every family matter, it does apply to an application for [ insert type of order sought ]. Therefore, as the applicant, you must attend a MIAM unless an exemption applies...