The definitive report on the treatment of men and fathers in UK matrimonial and family law :
The Emperor’s New Clothes : Divorce Process & Consequence
| This is essential reading for laymen and particularly for professionals
working in this area. If you thought that the horror stories you have heard of and read about are just isolated instances, then buy this report and read :
But don't take our word for it - read the references and the foreword in the flier below ! The report is available in hardback at £26, and on disk at £5. For further details and how to order, see below. |
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The Cheltenham Group's flier for this report
The flier which follows was sent in May 1997 to :
About 30 copies of the book were sold as a result, and 2 local radio appearances obtained. None of those involved in the legal system made contact. Flier follows.
The Cheltenham Group’s latest book - The Emperor’s New Clothes : Divorce Process & Consequence
- on the Realities of Matrimonial Law The Cheltenham Group have produced the first book which describes the realities of divorce for fathers and their children. This follows many years of study of written law, case law, the case histories of men during and after divorce, and recently of the results of a survey of members of Families Need Fathers conducted in 1995. The Cheltenham Group speaks for the United Kingdom Men’s Movement, Dads After Divorce, and the Family Law Action Group, on matters relating to matrimonial law and family policy. |
What they say
about this book
"… the report would be at the top of every 'fearless campaigning' journalist's list of truly sensational scandals of the second half of the twentieth century to be exposed; …" Norman Dennis, Formerly Reader in Social Studies, Guest Fellow in the Department of Religious Studies, University of Newcastle upon Tyne
"I found the whole book very interesting. … … I think the story is important and needs to be told."
Dr Ann Buchanan, Lecturer in Applied Social Studies, Dean of St Hilda’s College, University of Oxford |
| Foreword by
Norman Dennis
author of Families Without Fatherhood "The new report from the Cheltenham Group, an association 'fighting for the family' in the old sense of the term, does two things. First, it gives chapter and verse to the precise mechanisms through which the legal system itself has been wilfully and consciously used to destroy the institution of marriage, against the clear letter of the law and Parliament's stated intentions. It does so in a way that gives everyone the chance to check through their local library whether the Cheltenham Group is right or not in its facts and interpretations. Only with last year's Family Law Act was marriage abandoned as a life-long commitment that could be terminated only if the innocent party consented to the termination in the event of serious misconduct of the guilty party. But the report shows, with incontrovertible evidence, that for twenty years before and more, men had been the victims of a court system that increasingly acted on what can ever only be a legal fiction, that in marriage breakdown neither party could be 'at fault' (or both parties were always equally at fault) and therefore the law would only act on the assumption of 'no fault'. The principle and terminology were both lifted straight out of motor-car insurance. The sole idea in both fields is to save everybody - everybody except the innocent party - argument, trouble and expense. Secondly, it documents a series of case studies. By the nature of things, the individual reader cannot check on the harrowing stories the fathers report in convincing detail. We hear only their version and their side. But from what they say, one thing is quite certain. If to be a conscientious and committed husband and father was today even vaguely politically correct, both parts of the report would be at the top of every 'fearless campaigning' journalist's list of truly sensational scandals of the second half of the twentieth century to be exposed; of manipulating professionals to be brought to book; and of widespread and deep-seated individual tragedies, many of them too late now to be corrected, to be at least and at last recognized for the shameful injustices they were and remain."
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Contents
This book describes the impact, over the last generation, of the destruction of the legal institution of marriage. It documents the current process of matrimonial and family law, and the consequence for the individual. The description is supported by, and makes reference to, annexes which comprise :
- a dossier of 148 case studies in the man’s own words and categorised into the major aspects;
- the statistical results of the 1995 FNF survey, many of which have not previously been published.
An outline is given of the most significant aspects of the process, in terms of : the senior judges who have flouted the principles in the written laws; the public and Parliament kept in ignorance of these changes; and the serious malpractices by lawyers and court welfare officers who are complicit and who compound the effects. The consequences are described in terms of the effects and their scale.
It is conclusively shown by the consequences that : women only have rights, while men only have responsibilities; women are effectively above the law, while men don’t get protection; and badly behaved women are rewarded, while innocent men are persecuted.
This book will awaken many men and women to what has been done to our society over the last generation. It is essential information for professional and lay people concerned with the family.
Case studies
The case studies are placed into categories, each of which illustrates a different aspect of typical cases. The categories include : divorce, children, home and assets, legal costs and timescales, damage to health and career and quality of life, subsequent attitudes, wives’ behaviour, and malpractices in the legal system. Sample of case studies are available online.
A typical example in the man’s own words :
"It just seemed so unfair that my ex could walk out just because she couldn’t be bothered to make the effort, knowing she could take all the capital and income she wanted. Unfair that there is no effective defence against allegations of "unreasonable behaviour". … Unfair that I should lose £40k, £8k maintenance per annum, and all contact with my children except by using all my holiday to spend with them, that I have to drive 600 miles each time I see them, that I am punished like a serious criminal, when I have done nothing wrong." |
Statistics
The statistics are derived from a survey of members of the charity Families Need Fathers conducted in 1995, and serve to quantify various key aspects of the situation. As with the case studies, they are categorised to illustrate the key aspects of typical cases. The aspects are reflected in the section headings which are : The Respondents, Divorce, Children, Finances and Home, The Legal System, and Social Impact.
The statistics are presented in chart form with associated comments, as shown below :
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Figure 6.2 : Malpractices in the legal system Comments : the malpractices are regularly reported in anecdotal evidence. These figures illustrate the scale of the problem. Many men progress their case with an inadequate knowledge of the legal system, often relying on lawyers. They hence are not aware of what should have happened in the case, and so are not in a position to report the malpractices in their case. |
cried a little child. Danish Fairy Legends and Tales (1846) ‘The Emperor’s New Clothes’ Hans Christian Anderson 1805-75 : Danish novelist and writer of fairy stories |
Why this book is necessary
The Cheltenham Group are presenting this information to policy makers, Parliament and the public, in order to remove the overwhelming ignorance which exists, and to begin the process of restoration of matrimonial law. It is not our aim to remove protection from wives, but to ensure that husbands have equal protection, and that justice prevails. The Cheltenham Group has the following aims :
- no-fault divorce, as currently practised, is to be abolished and replaced by one of the following :
* a fully fault-based system;
* custody to the married father as the default;
* shared residence with Scottish-based property law;
- discretion by judges in matrimonial proceedings should be restricted by more careful and precisely specified statute;
- secret proceedings in matrimonial cases should be abolished;
- the conduct of lawyers, social workers, court welfare officers and judges should be subject to close continuous scrutiny by independent bodies with lay representation;
- necessary changes in statute should be pursued through the European Court of Human Rights, and compensation sought by the same means for the flagrant abuses of human rights by the UK Government through matrimonial proceedings against decent law-abiding citizens.
If you are also concerned, then please support our aims by promotion of this book, and by providing us with material support.
Ordering information for The Emperor's New Clothes : Divorce Process & Consequence |
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Disk : Hardcopy (Comb-bound) : |
ISBN 1 900080 04 4 ISBN 1 900080 03 6 |
price £5.00 £26.00 |
Disk format : IBM HD 1.44Mb. Software format : Microsoft Word V7.0. Both editions 335 pages. All prices include postage and packaging. Available from The Cheltenham Group, cheques payable to ‘The Cheltenham Group’. |
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The Cheltenham Group
PO Box 205, Cheltenham, Glos, GL51 0YL
Tel: 01242 691 110 Fax: 01242 691 120
Director : Barry Worrall BSc MSc MBCS CEng
