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18 Dalhousie L.J. 173 (1995)
Losing the Struggle for Another Voice: The Case of Family Law

handle is hein.journals/dalholwj18 and id is 173 raw text is: Articles Carol Smart* Losing the Struggle for Another Voice: The Case of Family Law This paper is based on empirical work in progress concerning co-parenting and the ways in which mothers and fathers organize the care of children after separation. It deals with two foundational issues: Gilligan's concept of another voice and its congruence with recent developments in family law in the United Kingdom and otherdeveloped countries including Canada and the United States. The author concludes that the ethic of care incorporated in the British legislation and given some expression in the judicial system does not fully recognize two kinds of caring. There is caring about and caring for. The caring about of fathers for children is generally lauded. The caring for of mothers for children is ignored or denigrated. The new legislation also adopts as its paradigm the good parent as being the one who concedes and who does not require state intervention. In a specific case study, the author demonstrates that the new legislation can operate to deny the existence and effects of spousal violence against a woman and her child. Introduction This paper is based on empirical work in progress,' the primary concerns of which are the concept of co-parenting and the ways in which mothers and fathers organise the care of children in the post-divorce or separation situation. This enquiry is set in the context of a major new piece of family legislation in the UK, namely The Children Act 1989 which was brought into force in 1992. Although this focus means that I shall be discussing some of the specifics of legislation in England and Wales it is my objective to transcend parochialism by using and developing ideas and concepts which have a wider application and which will be familiar to and, hopefully, useful to a broad audience. The significance of what I have to say does not reside so much in the actualities of law reform or the * School of Sociology and Social Policy, University of Leeds, UK. 1. The current project, entitled 'Negotiating Parenthood' is funded by the Economic and Social Research Council. It involves interviewing 60 parents at the point of divorce and again after one year. It also involves interviewing solicitors about their views on the new Children Act 1989. There was also a pilot project for this research, which was funded by The Nuffield Foundation, and was carried out in 1989-90 shortly before the new legislation was fully introduced (in 1992). The pilot project interviewed 30 parents on their experiences of the divorce process, with particular reference to issues concerning children.

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