Colin Jones, Chief Executive of Resolution addressed delegates at National Conference
Brighton, 21 May 2026
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Thank you, Jo and Verity, and good morning everyone – welcome to our National Conference 2026.
It’s great to be back in Brighton – that was a fast three years – and as ever, it’s a glorious sight to see this room full of both so many familiar and new faces.- you are, of course all very welcome!
As Chief Executive, it is a real honour to work with so many of you up and down the country, and to lead your amazing staff team in continuing to support all our members.
I must give a particular thanks to your brilliant National Committee, and to Melanie and Lucy as Chair and Vice-Chair, for their support to me and the team and I over the past 12 months and for their outstanding campaign to visit so many of you in the regions over the last 12 months.
Three years ago I stood here alongside Grant Cameron as we celebrated 40 years of Resolution.
We rightly paid tribute to John Cornwell – to his vision, his passion and his unwavering commitment to building the organisation that you all belong to today.
And when I look out across this room now, I’m reminded of something just as important.
Resolution’s strength has never come from one voice or one way of working.
It comes from all of you – our members – and the breadth of experience, insight and commitment you all bring.
There are many different strings to our collective bow and this range of skills and perspectives is exactly where our strength lies.
Everyone in this room, and every one of our members across the country, has something to contribute to our ever-growing community.
Whether you are at the start of your career, or have helped shape this organisation over decades.
Whether you work in the courts, outside of them, (or both), whether you’re financial advisor, a family therapist or one of the many other family justice professionals in our organisation– your role matters.
What brings us together is clear: Our Code of Practice, and our shared desire to find a better way for families navigating separation and divorce.
But what makes us stronger – what truly defines Resolution – is the richness of our differences.
- Different experience/expertise.
- Different approaches.
- Different methods.
A genuine diversity of thought.
This diversity of thought allows us to support families in a way that is more thoughtful, more empathetic, and ultimately more effective.
And it also shapes how your Resolution team supports you … through the myriad of training, events, publications and policy work, that I am proud to see delivered for you day in and day out.
Over the past 12 months this has been clear in everything we have done.
Every event we’ve delivered. Every training session we’ve hosted. Every Lunch & Learn we’ve streamed and every issue of The Review, has demonstrated that Resolution is the home to every part of the family justice profession.
We are a community that reflects the full landscape of family justice practice.
And nowhere is that more visible than here today at our National Conference.
There is something uniquely powerful about seeing our membership gathered here in one place.
New members and long-standing pioneers.
“Experienced professionals” – I’ll delicately put it – who today sit alongside our many YRes members, who are already playing a significant role in building Resolution and shaping its future.
Conference is a visible expression of who we are as an organisation:
Diverse in our background and our areas of expertise … driven and united by a shared purpose.
And it is that shared purpose that has helped establish Resolution as an influential and important firm but friendly voice to government.
This work is driven by the work of Resolution’s Head of Policy Rachel Rogers, and people like Jo Edwards, Graeme Fraser and other members of our Family Law Reform Group, together with our Cohabitation, Legal Aid, Dispute Resolution and many other Committees.
Our work over the past year has been instrumental in pushing forward the case for cohabitation reform, for publicly funded early legal advice and for the wider promotion of all forms of non-court dispute resolution.
Because while all of you are doing everything you can to support families through some of the most difficult periods of their lives … we also need support from policymakers.
Conference, we will continue to push government to get moving with Cohabitation Reform and other key policy areas – always guided by our Code of Practice and our Vision for Family Justice. We will do this not just for you, our members, but for the people you work so hard to support every day.
Trust me when I say, there really is momentum building on cohabitation reform.
It may not always move as quickly as we would like, it may sometimes feel glacial, but we will get there. And we will get this done.
Another area where we’ve seen real progress this year is in training – particularly in non-court dispute resolution.
This has been a key focus for Resolution and for our members and speaks directly to the heart of our Code of Practice – which calls on us to guide clients through all of the options available to them.
Last year, over half of the members and non-members we trained took part in training on non-court dispute resolution or closely related topics.
This reflects not only demand, but a growing commitment across our community to developing the skills and approaches that help families resolve issues constructively… without the need for court intervention.
We also re-launched our annual Dispute Resolution Conference, which took place in March. And I have to say, it gave me immense pride to see that conference sell out in a matter of days, and with a substantial number of names on the waiting list too.
This speaks volumes about the appetite of our members to support clients in the best possible way.
And beyond our own programmes, we’ve continued to support and promote wider activity in this space – including our sponsorship and active promotion of Family Mediation Week in January.
All of this points to something important.
This is not about moving away from one way of working to another, it’s about expanding our individual and collective capability.
It’s about recognising that supporting families well, means equipping ourselves with a range of resolution methods and knowing how and when to use each them.
I am proud that Resolution continues to lead this conversation – within the family justice community, with policymakers, and on behalf of all of the clients you all serve – making clear that these processes are not simply seen as “alternatives” to court.
Whether that is arbitration, collaborative practice, mediation, Resolution Together, or – when necessary of course – litigation.
You – Resolution members – play a crucial role in helping families find the right solution for them.
At the same time, it is vital that, in how we speak to clients and each other, we do not view one process as better than any other.
Instead, we must remember that, as part of Resolution, we are working together under that shared set of values to continue to find a better way for separating families.
After all, this is the vision on which we were founded – and what matters most is that families are supported to find the best path for them.
And, as I look ahead, this principle remains central.
Resolution will continue to be the home for all those committed to improving outcomes for families.
A place where different perspectives are welcomed.
Where expertise is shared.
And where innovation and diversity in the round is encouraged and celebrated.
Because ultimately, our impact is only as strong as our community.
And our community is only as strong as the willingness of its members to engage, to contribute, and to support one another.
So thank you all …
For the role each of you play in this.
For the time, the energy, the professionalism and the passion you bring. – And for continuing to make Resolution what it is today:
A diverse, thoughtful, and forward-looking organisation… united by a shared commitment to finding a better way.
I hope you have a fantastic conference.
And now I’m pleased to hand over to our brilliant Chair, Melanie Bataillard-Samuel.
Thank you.