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My Ex girlfriend broke up with me in July we have a daughter together. My daughter is nearly 6 months old now and I've not seen her since she was 10 weeks old The last date was July 24th my ex wont let me see her. I have tried to contact the ex through Facebook and by phone but she has blocked me on all avenues.. I am now unable to work due to heath problems I have had a number of heart operations and have had to leave my job for the time being. I contacted a solicitor and I was informed i was able to get Legal aid with them . They sent out a letter to arrange for my Ex to attend a mediation meeting just with them On Saturday I got a letter back from the solicitors they have informed me that my Ex had refused to speak with them so they have said they cant do anything else now for me. In the letter was forms for me to fill in should I wish to take the matter through the courts. I am unsure if I will get Legal aid for this? I am unable to fund it myself Could someone give advise please or if they have any ideas as to what I can now do next.
There are people here who know a lot more than I do but I know you can self represent so only the court fees
are payable.
You can also download the forms (C100) from this site and someone posted very good instructions too.
From the mediator you should have got a form stating that mediation had failed which is important
for the court...do you have it already?
As I said there Re more knowledgeable people here,I am sure they will give you better advice.
In the meantime...make sure you record any attempt you make to get in touch...and any responses you get.
Take care
Kirsten
Hi.
I take it you know where your ex lives? Or at least have her address?. You could send a stern (not threatening) letter to her with times and dates you would like to see your children and explain that if that doesn't happen, you will have no choice but to go to courts. If your solicitor is telling you your ex isn't willing to try mediation that's a refusal. If mediation is refused you or your solicitor will need to fill out a fm1 form (Google it for copies) . You can then go down the route of the c100 form. If yo need any help filling any of it out there loads of advice on here. But it will look good in court to show you've tried every route possible first before going for the contact order.
Unfortunately there is no Legal Aid for family law cases, only for mediation.
As has been said you can self represent and you will find lots of advice on here about the process. You will need form FM1 from your solicitor to prove that mediation has been attempted and refused.
If you are feeling too out of your depth with this might I suggest you attend a Families Need Fathers meeting in your area. Here you will find others in similar situations to your own and access to legal advice and support. Here's a link to their webpage where you will find details of meetings in your area.
www.fnf.org.uk/help-and-support/local-branch-meetings
Thanks for the advice, I will give the letter a try. I think I should send it recorded so then I have proof it was delivered, although I dont have much faith it will work but as said it's best that I've shown I've tried.
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