Leading family lawyers have expressed disappointment and concern at the government’s approach to funding mediation sessions for divorcing couples. The Family Justice Minister, Simon Hughes, recently announced that separating couples will be entitled to one free mediation session as long as at least one of them qualifies for legal aid. This is an improvement on
A father has been denied direct contact with his estranged son after the court heard that the boy didn’t want to see him. The boy’s parents had been married but separated shortly after he was born. The father maintained regular contact with his son until the mother became suspicious that the boy had been injured
The government has shelved its controversial plans for an online system for creating lasting powers of attorney (LPA). The decision follows concerns raised by the Law Society and others that a fully digital system could be open to fraud and abuse. LPAs enable you to nominate someone in advance to look after your affairs should
Leading family lawyers have expressed disappointment and concern at the government’s approach to funding mediation sessions for divorcing couples. The Family Justice Minister, Simon Hughes, recently announced that separating couples will be entitled to one free mediation session as long as at least one of them qualifies for legal aid. This is an improvement on
The government has announced that children will be given a greater voice in the family justice system so they can they can express their opinions about disputes that affect their lives. Ministers say children as young as 10 will be able to make their views known to the judge dealing with their case. It follows
Law firms in England and Wales have reported a rise in the number of couples making pre-nuptial agreements. Pre-nups – as they are commonly known – are drawn up by couples before they get married. They state how assets should be divided if the marriage doesn’t work out. A report in the Daily Telegraph suggests
One of Britain’s leading family law judges is calling for changes in the divorce process that would take most cases out of the courts altogether. Sir James Munby is the President of the Family Division of the High Court. He wants uncontested divorce cases without any claims over money or children to be settled in
A mother has been given a second chance to try to leave the UK despite a judge’s concerns that she was only doing so to take her children away from their father. The case involved a German couple who had lived in England for more than 12 years. They had two children aged four and
A businessman has been sentenced to four months in prison after failing to disclose financial information during his divorce proceedings. The high profile case involved former model Alisa Thiry and her second husband, Didier Thiry, a Belgian businessman and property developer. Their divorce involved complex discussions about how the couple’s considerable wealth should be divided.
A father has been denied direct contact with his daughters because they repeatedly stressed that they didn’t want to see him after he separated from their mother. The sisters were born in 2003 and 2006. They both moved out of the family home with their mother when their parents separated in 2008. Then the sisters