The number of legal disputes over children almost doubled in January as Christmas and the recession combined to increase tensions between divorced parents, figures have revealed.

Contact Law, a client introduction network for law firms, said enquiries regarding child support and child custody jumped 49%, from 373 in December 2009 to 557 in January 2010 – a much greater rise than the upturn usually associated with the month.

Contact Law director Dan Watkins said: ‘Just as we have seen an increase in divorce proceedings initiated after the Christmas period, we are also seeing other family law disputes take a similar seasonal pattern.’

He said the desire for parents to increase access to their children over Christmas and the logistical challenges created by family gatherings meant that arrangements needed to be renegotiated, which caused disputes.

Arguments are also caused where parents seek increased child maintenance due to greater spending at Christmas, he said.

‘At the same time the weak economy has exacerbated the situation by making the funding of child support payments and Christmas-related expenditure far more difficult,’ said Watkins.

He added: ‘The recession has impacted on parents’ ability to continue to support their children financially, and some may have fallen behind with child support payments, potentially leaving the other parent having to support them single-handedly.’

Watkins said the rise in conflicts had been coupled by a greater trend for parents to seek to resolve disputes through mediation and collaborative approaches, because they are quicker, cheaper and less traumatic than the court process.

‘Mediation has been increasingly used over the last ten years. More recently, we have also recorded a sharp rise in the use of collaborative approaches, which have the advantage of making the agreements legally binding and are therefore seen as an effective middle way between mediation and a court case,’ he said.