SERVICE DIVORCES

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 10, Issue 74, 17 January 1947, Page 8

SERVICE DIVORCES

SPEED-UP PLANNED SPECIAL TRAINING SCHEME A speed-up in Service divorces—from 5,198 cases in four years to 2,823 in the past nine months—was planned with all the precision and fore thought called for in a major military campaign. • The “general officers commanding” were the officers of the Law Society.

Starting four years ago with only five units to handle Service cases they have now built up 31 units with offices in London and in nine provincial cities. All are staffed by fully trained solicitors and are situated as close as possible to the courts.

It was last February that the Law Society was approached by the Government to help solve the problem of the divorce bottleneck.

The Poor Persons Department then had 15,000 Service cases waiting for the committee to decide if there were need for assistance. Certificates for aid were passing through at only 50 or 60 a week. Quickly the Law Society drew up a special training scheme. Solicitors to staff new provincial centres were recruited and brought to London for three months’ training. In London they worked with solicitors already handling Service cases so that some of the bottleneck was broken while the recruits were training.

Premises had to be found, then came the task; of finding enough shorthand typists to assist the lawyers.

Out of mere than 3000 applicants less than 10 per cent, were deemed suitable. Each had to be interviewed in London before appointment. The speed-up machine is not yet working at anything like full power. Soon the 40,751 cases pending will be passing through the courts at close on 20,000 a year.