As we step into 2025, many individuals and families are considering a fresh start—whether through separation, divorce, or resolving conflicts that have been simmering for years. Family disputes can be emotionally taxing, and navigating these sensitive...
Family Blog
A relationship breakdown often means a dramatic change in life for all involved and when parents live apart, arrangements need to be agreed about how and when children will see each of their parents. If a couple can agree arrangements between...
Since April 2022, couples have been able to seek a divorce after one year of marriage without having to blame their former partner for any reason. Prior to the change in the law, couples who agreed to separate had to wait at least two years before they could...
It is forecast that, by the end of this year, 90 per cent of the UK adult population will use a social media account at least once a month. This is a remarkable statistic, but perhaps even more remarkable is that the average user is estimated to spend...
Nearly 60,000 people benefit from invitro fertilisation (IVF) and donor insemination at HFEA licensed fertility clinics in the UK, and it is not uncommon for an unlicensed clinic or ‘at home’ informal arrangement to be used for sperm...
If you are applying for a financial order as part of your divorce then the court will list your case in for a financial dispute resolution hearing, often called an FDR hearing. This is a private court hearing and is aimed at trying to assist parties in...
If you cannot reach an agreement with your former partner about arrangements for your children, one of you may apply to the family court for an independent decision. The courts have a wide range of powers in deciding where a child should live and how...
Once a relationship has broken down, while many couples remain on good terms, sometimes the situation is irretrievable and behaviour can go beyond what is acceptable or legal. In particular, disputes over who gets what in the financial settlement can...
Recent research by Loughborough University shows a sharp rise in the so called ‘boomerang’ generation of young adults returning to live at home until their late twenties or early thirties. This trend has continued as a result of the...
Following the introduction of civil partnerships in 2005 and same sex marriages in 2014, there has been an increase in families and then relationship breakdown between same sex parents. Finding agreement over issues relating to children can be tricky...
If you are coming out of a relationship, whether you were cohabiting, married or in a civil partnership, you may be asking if you need to formalise that separation. A separation agreement is a formal contract which can be agreed between you and your...
Our family lawyers look at how a spouse’s future earning capacity is treated in divorce.
A proposal for DNA testing of family members can arise in a number of circumstances, most commonly where there are questions over paternity (although occasionally maternity is tested too), when establishing contact and residence, or when determining a...
Husbands, wives and civil partners can find themselves abandoned through a variety of different situations. Sometimes the reason is obvious, such as a forced marriage, a scam marriage where one person was simply seeking a visa, an abusive marriage or...
Christmas Past and Present - how to try and ensure that Christmas this year is a joyful time for the Children and not saddened by memories of past disputes Christmas is fast approaching and soon we will be seeing Charles Dickens’ “A Christmas...