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Helping parents with divorce

Program offers advice for parents

Mike W. Bryant
Northern News Services

Yellowknife (Jan 11/02) - The process of divorce, both legally and emotionally, is daunting for both parents and children.

To help people better understand what happens when a family breaks up, the GNWT's Department of Justice is currently seeking proposals to deliver a parenting program during February and March.

"They're essentially information sessions for parents undergoing separation and divorce," said Lucy Austin, senior family law adviser for the Department of Justice.

"It's not to replace the legal process, it's complementary."

Austin said a need exists for the program because few people understand the legal process when undergoing divorce proceedings, and the effect they have on children.

A trial program was held in the fall of 2000. Austin could not provide information on how many people attended sessions, but said it was successful. If demand for the upcoming program is high, the territorial government may extend the program past March. The program is free for participants.

The program seminars will be conducted by family lawyers, with an average of eight participants. Parents undergoing a particularly acrimonious divorce are usually assigned separate seminars, said Austin.

Clients are advised to attend two seminars before legal proceedings begin.

The program is financed by the territorial and federal government, with co-operation from the NWT Legal Services Board. Austin said the cost of running the program over February and March will not be known until a contractor has been chosen.

Mike Himmelman is a family lawyer with Gullberg, Wiest, MacPherson, and Kay who has worked cases across the NWT and Nunavut. He thinks the program is a good idea.

"A lot of the problems are not legal problems, but emotional problems, and lawyers cannot always help their clients with emotional problems," said Himmelman.

The program is currently only available in Yellowknife.