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Legal Friends of Gingerbread
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Join Legal Friends of Gingerbread today and add your voice to the campaign for change
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Thursday, 19th November 2009 saw Gingerbread, with the generous support of the FLBA, play host to almost 90 family lawyers who attended our pilot seminar “Litigants in Person: a unique insight”. 

A glittering panel of speakers headed by a distinguished Chair, Mr Justice Andrew MacFarlane, included District Judge Penny Cushing, David Woodward, Secretary of Resolution, and Lisa Clarke, a single parent member of Gingerbread who recently represented herself during a number of court hearings and provided the audience with an articulate, personal account of her experience as a “litigant in person”.

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The issue of self-representation has attracted much debate in the past and increasing numbers of “litigants in person” continue to present growing challenges for those involved in the family law.  The impressive turn-out of attendees highlighted the professional interest in this subject and during both the Q & A session and subsequent discussions at the reception following the seminar, it was clear that there are no quick and easy solutions to resolving the problems faced by all parties when access to appropriate legal representation is not universally available.
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In an effort to engage more constructively with those involved in family law (and move forward in areas where we already have well-established relationships) Gingerbread has launched a new membership initiative, Legal Friends of Gingerbread.  Apart from regular updates about our work and priority access to newly published policy research, members will also be offered free attendance to an annual seminar and enjoy networking and professional development opportunities. 
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Virtually everyone knows someone who was either raised by, is, or has been, a single parent.  Family lawyers deal with single parents on a daily basis and understand more acutely than many other groups the issues that affect them and the complex challenges they often face. 



We hope that, with the support of legal professionals, we can continue to provide vital expert information and advice, membership and training opportunities and to campaign against poverty, disadvantage and stigma to promote fair and equal treatment for single parents and their families.  

Join Legal Friends of Gingerbread today and add your voice to the campaign for change.

£36pa (or £10pa for members below 7 years call or PQE).

<font class="titleid1siteid0">LFGB Standing Order Form [PDF, 128KB]</font>