During the consultation, stakeholders identified training needs in the following policy areas , which could be considered as priorities for training: environmental law; civil, contract, family and commercial law, competition law, intellectual property rights; criminal law (in particular the implementation of the European arrest warrant), crime against Union financial interests; fundamental rights and data protection.

whereas family law (notably marriage and divorce law) often puts women in a weaker legal and financial position, and whereas courts sometimes add to the inequalities between men and women by applying family law on the basis of traditional role models instead of equal rights,

Information about rights to be given under this Directive should as a minimum requirement under this Directive include information on the right of access to a lawyer, the right to be informed of the charge and, where appropriate, to be given access to the case-file, the right to interpretation and translation for those who do not understand the language of the proceedings and the right to be brought promptly before a court if the suspected or accused person is arrested. This is without prejudice to information to be given on other procedural rightsstemming from the Charter, the ECHR, the ICCPR and applicable EU legislation as interpreted ...[+++] by the relevant courts and tribunals.

It should contain one or more items from a scheme containing values for civil law, commercial law, family law, insolvency law, private international law, criminal law, EU law, administrative law, tax law, international public law and constitutional law, and may contain a more specific description of the field of law.

The fourth part of the Council report deals with family law and does not need to be summarised in detail here as family law is outside of the scope of the Commission's Communication.

Because I don't practise family law, I can't say for sure, but it is my understanding from talking to family lawyers that just as in the other civil sphere, very few people presently use the mediation system.