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SERVICES
 

Our experienced and qualfied team can help you throughout the family law process or just elements of the process, whichever you choose is best for you.    We are in contact with excellent services such as Mediation, Counselling, Parenting Experts, Solicitors and Barristers.   It may surprise you to know that a Barrister may charge similar amounts to some McKenzie Friends to attend a final hearing or fact finding hearing on your behalf, taking the stress out of speaking yourself.  We provide you with a choice by giving comparative fees so that you can make a fully informed decision.

Children 

We can help you whether you are parents who need to determine where your child  lives or if you want to see your child more often. or if you are grandparents who want to see your grandchild.  Sometimes, where Children's Services are involved it can be challenging for grandparents to even speak with the Social Workers involved.  

 

We often get asked what are the rights of father's as a father wants to maintain a relationship with his children upon separation or divorce.  From a legal perspective it is a child that has rights as opposed to parents, we can discuss this with you further.    

 

 We can help you with: 

 

  • Applications for Parental Responsibility

  • Child Arrangement Orders (previously know as Residence and Contact Orders)

  • Applications relating to relocation of your child

  • Prohibited Steps Orders (for example preventing your ex-partner from changing a child's school)

  • Specific Issue Order (for example changing a child's surname

  • Applications for DNA Testing

  • Applications to find out a child's whereabouts

  • Applications where  Children's Services are involved such as Care or Supervsion Orders

 

 We can assist and guide you with the whole process or certain elements of the process, whichever you choose.  This includes:

 

  • Making an Application

  • Attending the First Directions Hearing or the Financial Dispute Resolution Hearing

  • Assisting with Negotiation at Court or with the other party (or other party's Solicitor)

  • Assisting with writing letters putting forward offers to settle

  • Discussing the best strategy, likely outcome and risks involved 

  • Preparation of Documents such as Position Statment and Statement of Evidence 

  • Preparation for Final Hearing including Court Bundle, Skeleton Argument, Examination Questions  

  • Attending the Final Hearing 

 

Contact us here for further information or for a free initial consultation.

 

 

Financial Applications

We can help you whether you married and separating or wish to divorce or whether you are unmarried and separating.   For married couples there is family law that applies.  For umarried couples there is no specific law, and you will need to rely upon Property Law and the case law that has provided guidance and principles for unmarried couples.

 

We can help you with:

 

  • Applications for a Financial Order

  • Applications for the Transfer of Property, Lump Sums, Pension Sharing and Maintenance Orders

 

All cases are different and what applications are necessary depends upon the financial circumstances of the couples involved.  The Judge will only make orders where there has been full and frank disclosure of each parties financial circumstances.  

 

We can assist and guide you with the whole process or certain elements of the process, whichever you choose.  This can include:

 

  • Making an Application

  • Preparing the Financial Statement (Form E)

  • Preparing a Questionnaire and Responses to the Questionnaire from the other person

  • Attending the First Directions Hearing or the Financial Dispute Resolution Hearing

  • Assisting with Negotiation at Court or with the other party (or other parties Solicitor)

  • Assisting with writing without prejudice letters putting forward offers to settle

  • Discussing the best strategy, likely outcome and risks involved 

  • Preparation of Documents such as Chronology, Case Summary and Statement of Issues and Schedule of Assets

  • Preparation for Final Hearing including Court Bundle, Skeleton Argument, Examination Questions  

 

Divorce

We can help you with your divorce or separation.  Often couples prefer to wait until they have been seperated for two years to divorce rather than filing divorce petitions relying on either the unreasonable behaviour or adultery of the other party.  There is the option at the time of separation of also sharing the assets of the marriage and setting out any agreement in what is called a Separation Agreement.  This provides strong evidence of agreement in the future should a dispute arise, for example, if one party unexpectedly increases their assets such an unforeseeable inheritance.    

 

If you decide to divorce the only ground for divorce is called irretrievable breakdown of the marriage.  You will need to show either, unreasonable behaviour, adultery, living separate and apart for two years with the other party's consent, desertion or living separate and apart for five years.  

 

The divorce procedure in a straightforward divorce is relatively simple:  

 

  • Preparing Divorce Petition and Statement of Arrangement for Children Form

  • Application for Decree Nisi

  • Application for Decree Absolute

 

We can help you obtain a divorce by assisting in preparing the documents or assist you in reaching agreement as to the sharing of the assets of the marriage if you decide to wait to divorce and assist you with preparing a Separation Agreement. 

 

We can assist and guide you with the whole process or certain elements of the process, whichever you choose.  

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