1. INTRODUCTION

John Eekelaar was probably the first scholar in the United Kingdom systematically to combine theoretical, contextual and empirical insights with doctrinal rigour, in order to explore how family law operates in practice, as well as in theory. His work has set a benchmark for everyone working in the field, and it is a great privilege to contribute to this Festschriftin his honour.

In one of his early works, Family Law and Social Policy, Eekelaar identified three ‘grounds for modern state intervention in family living’:

Most family law litigation concerns the future arrangements for family members, rather than identifying liability or responsibility for events or actions that have already taken place. The orders that the family courts make may involve all three of Eekelaar’s grounds for intervention: to adjust the parties’ arrangements, for example as to the sharing of their finances, or co-parenting their children; to protect family members from abusive relationships, for example by controlling the abuser’s behaviour; and to support the maintenance of family relationships despite changes in living arrangements, where it is safe to do so – an aim strongly evident in the approach taken in the family courts to post-separation parenting.

In England and Wales, the vast majority of families resolve these matters for themselves without involving the court, and most applications that are made to the court are settled. It does not follow that such families make ‘good’ agreements and live happily ever after. However, those cases that result in a court order, particularly a contested one, will undoubtedly include families who continue to struggle to arrive at a workable ongoing relationship, even if the court proceedings have supposedly been completed. In a proportion of these cases there may be continuing litigation, perhaps for many years, as one or the other party refuses to accept the court’s decision and seeks its variation. In others, there may be a steadfast refusal to comply with the terms of an order.