Family Law
Without doubt divorce/separation can be a stressful time. Our Family Law Department offers an experienced and yet sympathetic and understanding approach to resolving matters. All four members of the Department are members of Resolution which is a body committed to a code of practice of dealing with matters in a conciliatory manner which tends to be rather more cost effective for our clients!
Divorce
If you wish to proceed with a divorce soon after separating from your spouse then you will need to satisfy the Court that he or she has either committed adultery or has behaved unreasonably during the course of the marriage. We will be able to discuss this with you to see if you have sufficient grounds on that basis and then draft the petition for you. Many people without a solicitor fall into difficulties with this as understandably they are unclear as to exactly what information the Court require or how to set it out. The alternative would be to wait until you have been living apart for a period of 2 years and then to commence Divorce Proceedings on the basis of that period of separation. Your spouse’s consent is, however, crucial to enable the divorce to go through at that time and if that consent is not forthcoming then you would have to be separated for a period of 5 years before the divorce can proceed on the basis of separation alone.
Children/Financial
Very often there will be financial issues or issues in respect of children that will need to be resolved as part of a divorce or separation. We can advise you in respect of what would be a suitable financial settlement and can assist in making appropriate arrangements concerning your children. We are committed to negotiating a settlement for you if at all possible and work closely with local mediation services to try and resolve matters. Philip Elliott has now qualified as a Collaborative lawyer, which is a relatively new concept in family law. The idea is for the parties and their solicitors to sit around a table and attempt to resolve matters. This cuts out most of the correspondence that there might be and is considered a very civilised way of dealing with matters. In some situations, however, an application to the Court is needed and we are experienced in dealing with Court Proceedings in a constructive manner.
Cohabitation
Needless to say not all separations concern married couples and so we also have considerable experience in dealing with the separation of unmarried couples in terms of both financial issues and issues in respect of children. We frequently encounter the belief amongst clients that the concept of common-law spouse exists. It does not! As such it is important for cohabitees who are considering splitting up to obtain legal advice sooner rather than later. There are proposed changes to the law in respect of this and we will, of course, be able to advise you if and when those changes take place.
Childcare and Adoption
Of course there are occasions when individuals might need to consult with us even though they are not going through divorce or separation. This might include situations such as when the Local Authority are involved and are proposing to take children into care. Inevitably this can be a very difficult time for parents and the extended family and so we can assist and attend Court in order to contest that should it be appropriate. Another area where we can assist in relation to children is in respect of adoption. We can guide you through the process including the application to the Court and representing you there.
Pre-Nuptial/Cohabitation Agreements
Some people might be contemplating marriage but are concerned about preserving their assets in the event of a marital breakdown. The law in respect of prenuptial agreements is developing all the time and we can assist in relation to the drafting of such an agreement. Similarly for couples proposing to cohabit it is often very sensible to have a cohabitation agreement drawn up to confirm what each will pay for and to deal with what should occur in the event of them subsequently splitting up. We can assist with this as well.
Civil Partnership
The law constantly changes and we pride ourselves in keeping up-to-date with developments. The most recent major change in Family Law has been the introduction of civil partnerships. There is now legislation in place as to how matters should be dealt with in the event of a breakdown of a civil partnership and so we can advise in relation to that.
In Summary
Whilst relationship breakdown can indeed be stressful we aim to assist you through the process in order to make it is as painless as possible. We have a contract with the Legal Services Commission (previously known as the Legal Aid Board) to ensure that we can offer Public Funding (previously known as Legal Aid) to those clients who are eligible. For those who are not we would be happy to discuss our charges with you and we offer an initial fixed fee first interview.