Rachael Blakey
Associate Professor
Director of the Academic Skills Programme (ASP)
Deputy Director of EDI (Student Facing)
Family Law; Mediation; Access to Justice; Dispute Resolution; Professionalism; Gender; Legal Aid; Family Mediation
School of Law
B1.15, Social Sciences Building
University of Warwick
Coventry CV4 7AL
United Kingdom
024 765 24954
My main research interests are in family law, socio-legal methods and access to justice. My PhD considered the purpose of, and perceptions around, family mediation in the modern family justice landscape. From developing a theoretical framework, to scrutinising the structural problems around the mediator profession, I re-examined family mediation as a process that promotes a new vision of family justice in the contemporary climate. This is a timely and cutting-edge area of research following recent reforms which removed legal aid for most private family law disputes. I am hoping to publish the findings and results from my PhD in future publications, though am more than happy to speak to people beforehand! I have also conducted research into public information on private family law matters, particularly the information available to those without legal representation.
I am currently writing my thesis into an upcoming monograph, and am also conducting a quantitative analysis of legal aid statistics around family mediation.
Other research interests include gender and the law, feminist theory and family dispute procedures in general.