Legal fees are notorious, not only for being high but they also seem to be unpredictable. That is partly because everybody starts off hoping that matters will resolve relatively easily, that the issues are not complicated and it will all be over very quickly and cheaply. Life is rarely like that, other people do not(…)
Are-Nuptial Agreements are made by couples before they actually get married, setting out the arrangements for that marriage and, in particular, what they would like to happen should they separate. Generally they deal with financial issues and how their assets will be divided should they get divorced. Pre-nups are most common where one party has(…)
Many couples involved in divorce or issues related to children would say very definitely “no”. It can seem as though the “system” is against you. The Courts are not really designed with people in mind; they are rather run by and for lawyers. The individuals whose lives are being decided by the Judges rarely understand(…)
The Chancellor has recently had the benefit of some very useful figures which suggest that after several years of decline the country might be recovering, whatever this means. The figures suggest: that we are all suddenly better off, that the economy is picking up, we have more money to spend. I am not sure many(…)
According to the media, January and February are peak times for people to consider a divorce. Whether it is because it is a new year and they want a new start or because the weather is so miserable, people have run out of money after Christmas, there is not a lot to look forward to,(…)
In order to advise properly as to terms for financial settlement within divorce, we need to see both parties’ full financial details and supporting documents. Clients can find this an extremely frustrating and drawn-out process, particularly if the other party is not in any particular hurry or will not co-operate. In terms of getting your(…)
A new report by Netmums suggests that separating parents are in denial about the effect of the divorce on their children. Netmums, the parenting organisation, surveyed a thousand parents and a hundred children separately and concluded that parents see their divorce very differently from their children. According to the report: Almost a third of under(…)
It is not commonly realised that if you live with someone to whom you are not married, if you do not make a Will leaving your assets to them, then on your death they will not automatically receive anything from your estate. Family arrangements are now increasingly complex. People may have married and divorced, remarried(…)
The Crime and Courts Act 2013 introduced the concept of a single Family Court, which will deal only with family matters. This, it is anticipated, will be operational from April 2014. The Family Court will deal with all family cases with the exception of two areas of law: those involving the jurisdiction of the High(…)
As most of you know I recently embarked on a cycling event for Oxfam (my Just Giving page is www.justgiving.com/nickysbike). This was a cycling event which takes place once every four years, it is run by Audax UK which is an international long distance cycling organisation and riders from all over the World participated. Entry(…)
It is often a problem for one party who does not work to fund legal proceedings if they do not have access to joint funds or any independent means. They may negotiate a loan from their solicitor on the basis that they will repay the costs once the house is sold but it is obviously(…)
The child support agency has had its critics and its difficulties. It was temporarily replaced by CMEC (but nobody noticed the difference and CMEC itself was abolished in March 2012). Since then the Department for Work and Pensions has been responsible for the CSA which in turn was replaced by the Child Maintenance Service (CMS)(…)
This might be a strange question as everyone assumes they know what mediation is. But when you also have collaboration, arbitration and compromise, what exactly is mediation and how does it differ from the other approaches to problem-solving? With mediation there is generally one mediator with two people who have, for whatever reason, not been(…)
As you may be aware, it is not so much parental separation that causes problems for children but conflict they may see or experience between parents. Conflict may not be obvious: silence can be a form of conflict which some children may be very sensitive to and affected by. However difficult it may be for(…)
I was listening to a report of a series of experiments carried out to test how good radiographers were at identifying signs of cancer. The participants were given x-rays and told to look for the usual signs which may indicate cancerous growths. A small cartoon picture of a gorilla was added to the x-rays. Not(…)
I am writing this following the recent debate about same-sex marriage – should it be allowed, should it go ahead, what do religious institutions feel about it. But what does the Law say about it? This encouraged me to look at the whole issue of void and voidable marriages. A marriage is void if it(…)
When parents separate a key question is what is going to happen to the children. Contrary to popular belief both parents not just fathers, fear that they will see less of their children. Obviously dads worry that they may not have so much contact with their children but mums worry about that too. The question(…)
On the 25th February MPs passed the new Children and Families Bill which extends the statutory rights for parents in relation to their children’s upbringing. This has an impact in both employment and family law. One example is that maternity leave, available from two weeks to 12 months following birth can be used by the(…)
There has been plenty in the press recently about the rising number of complaints about family lawyers, in particular to the legal ombudsman. The main reason for those complaints seems to be the cost of divorce in terms of legal fees. I am not going to defend the position of family lawyers here but I(…)
Are lawyers about to disappear from the high street? Are we going to have to introduce different ways to deliver legal advice – by email or telephone? Is it going to become an expensive luxury to actually sit down face-to-face with a solicitor? The Co-operative Society have recently announced that it has recruited 3,000 high(…)
My feeling is that most people want and assume the law to be on their side, to create fairness, to right wrongs, to put things in order. But when a person comes to me to seek fairness, it tends to be interpreted from their perspective. In a matrimonial dispute, the Court does indeed want to(…)
Parents are increasingly having to get involved with their children’s divorce. Perhaps it is one aspect of the recession that parents are needed, not just as a shoulder to cry on but to provide financial support. This can take the form of paying the legal fees or more often lending money (perhaps that should be(…)
Employing lawyers can be expensive which is why we have introduced a new way to pay. It is actually a completely different way of using or accessing legal services. We want to make it as easy as possible to get advice that you can afford. Obviously the more time you spend with the lawyer the(…)
I think there is huge confusion with the term mediation, what does it mean, how much does it involve giving legal advice or information or does it just mean listening to two people arguing? How does collaboration fit with mediation – what is the difference? I think as lawyers we have really failed to get(…)
I think the short answer to this is possibly not, unless it is a short marriage without children, then it might be, but even then I am sure one person will be more upset than the other if they are in some way on the receiving end of news that they did not want to(…)
The Government seems to be more and more interested in how people get divorced, and how to make the process less damaging and less expensive – primarily for the taxpayer rather than for the individuals concerned. Courts are expensive institutions to operate – parties are encouraged to attend mediation before issuing any type of Court(…)
It seems to me that there should be a guide on how to behave during a divorce, whether you are the couples themselves or their friends and families. Everyone knows people who are separating or going through a divorce and it is usually a painful process for all concerned. Although it is a common occurrence(…)
You may have heard on the news about recent changes to the law on harassment. By coincidence I am reading a book by Robert Dunbar ‘The Signs of Love and Betrayal’ where there is a description of a recognised condition known as Clerambault’s syndrome (named after a French psychiatrist) which is an obsession or more(…)
It does seem rather strange that managing the growth of a business is much more difficult than just carrying on doing the same thing with no growth. It is probably rather like cycling; it is much more difficult cycling downhill because things can get out of hand and it requires for more skill than cycling(…)
One of the secrets of Facebook’s success has been the way it allows us to maintain relationships we value over distances that in the past would have meant that the relationships died a natural death within a relatively short space of time. Facebook enables us to keep friends with those we met at school, previous(…)
This blog was prompted by a telephone call I received late one Friday from someone extremely anxious about the way his separation was going. He had hoped to keep things fairly low key and amicable between himself and his wife. A family friend was acting as a go between in helping them to sort out(…)
Although it is only November, as soon as the clocks go back it seems that everyone is trying to get us to focus on Christmas. Christmas can be a great family time of year, an excuse to take some time to visit friends and family, but equally it can be a dreadful time of financial(…)
I am reading a fascinating book at the moment – ‘The Science of Love and Betrayal’ by Robin Dunbar, it is all about why people fall in love, is there any scientific or logical reason for this, does it actually help the development of the human race? It appears not, we do not actually need(…)
I sometimes think that blaming someone else is a national sport, as a nation we seem to be quite good at it. If there’s a problem then we blame the bankers, the politicians, those claiming benefits, those not paying taxes. It’s never our fault or our responsibility. An interesting example is education. Employers are always(…)
Medea is a Greek Tragedy written by Euripides around about the 5th Century BC. It tells the tale of a wife scorned by her husband so enraged by her predicament that she takes revenge through their children. In her desire to hurt him she kills their children. Far fetched? Well, I have just been listening(…)
Everybody is aware that divorce rates are rising and there is supposedly a crisis with the nuclear family in Britain. We look back to some mythical time in the 1950s with its low divorce rates and seemingly perfect happy families, to a time that we may want to emulate. However, there were very real social(…)
A typical matrimonial asset would be the family home; bought together, lived in together and when the parties separate it needs to be dealt with in a way that ensures both have somewhere to live. The property is either sold or transferred to one or other of the parties. This is on a relatively equal basis(…)
Every so often we have a debate on parental rights about whether there should be an automatic assumption that both parents should play an equal role in their children’s lives if they separate or divorce. The debate normally centres around the argument of whether or not the Courts have a bias in favour of the(…)
Divorce and Children Apart from the Olympics it’s been a pretty awful summer for many:- whether it be washed out summer fetes, no improvement in the economy (whatever that means!) or graduate unemployment, times have been difficult for some. Thank goodness for the Olympics which gave us all something else to focus on. However back to(…)
Following on from the previous blog here are 5 more issues to consider:- 1) Children. They can be a source of great joy, but also of great stress. Becoming parents introduces a different dynamic to your relationship. Be prepared to adapt to this and support one another. 2) Take a look at your spouse’s parents(…)
1) Marry the right person. This may sound obvious, but it is amazing how many people really do marry the wrong person, or fail to take sufficient time to make sure they make the right decision. Far better to try and ensure a correct decision than have to undo the wrong on later. Divorce is(…)
I have just come back from a few days in France, during which I read Malcolm Gladwell’s “The Tipping Point.” The book talks about how events that were, at one point unusual become common place, styles that were uncommon suddenly become all the rage. One example he used was Hush Puppies, a shoe that went(…)
This blog was prompted by a lot of conversations recently about the concept of ‘fairness’. What is or can be ‘fair’ about divorce and the inevitable division of the family assets? Who decides what is fair and reasonable – well ultimately a Judge at the end of an expensive and sometime acrimonious legal process. Alternatively,(…)
I am sitting here in the office at 11 o’clock at night doing one or two things which I thought might take me an hour or two but has taken a lot longer and I still have a pile of bad debts to deal with! Yes the freedom that being your own boss gives you,(…)
What rights does a common law partner have? I am going to repeat again that there is no such thing as common law marriage. You are either married, or you’re not. You either have the legal protection of a civil partnership or marriage, or you do not. If you are in a legally recognised partnership/relationship(…)
Just to cheer myself up while I was on holiday I re-read ‘The End of Lawyers?’ by Richard Susskind. It’s subtitled rethinking the nature of legal services and the gist of his argument is that we should be moving towards what he refers to as the commodification of legal services. This would make everything lawyers(…)
Civil partnerships recognise the validity of same sex relationships. They provide the same legal and social recognition as heterosexual couples who marry. It is a public statement, sign of commitment and a legally recognised category. As with marriage, civil partnership changes the legal relationship between couples and gives them certain rights, responsibilities and entitlements which(…)
The ownership of jointly owned property can be a minefield. People can own it in all sorts of different capacities, all of which have different results if they fall out or want to sell the property. So, first of all, what happens if two people who are not married buy a property together? You might(…)
I am quite an enthusiastic cyclist averaging around 200 miles a week. Many people suggest that this must take quite a lot of time and doesn’t it interfere with the rest of my life. That time out is a vital few hours every day to plan, think about your business and to work on and(…)
We often come across people who have separated, but never quite got round to doing anything about getting divorced, or dealing with all the other aspects of their life together that may have to change because of their separation. So for instance one party might move out of the matrimonial home leaving the other with(…)
WHY I AM SO PASSIONATE ABOUT COLLABORATIVE LAW We all know that we are all different and yet we are always faced with situations and circumstances that try and generalise and fit us all into the same box. In divorce the court assumes a standard separation, a standard divorce, a certain way of dealing with(…)
I am not so much talking about the cost to the tax payer of providing Legal Aid, but the cost to those involved in family disputes once Legal Aid is reduced to the absolute minimum as the Government proposes. Everyone, apart from possibly the Government, knows that an immediate consequence will be a huge increase(…)
We perhaps all know that the traditional nuclear family – mother, father and children that they have produced together, although possibly the “norm” is by no means the only concept of “family” which society recognises. With the increasing recognition of same sex relationships, other family arrangements are made and it follows too that when these(…)
The Family Justice Review (“FJR”) was the long awaited report into the running of the family courts. It came out at the end of November and in February the Government proposed changes to contact arrangements and this caught the headlines. It is perhaps unfortunate that some of the other less provocative, but very sensible, proposals(…)
The Family Justice Review (“FJR”) came out at the end of last year, but due to its length it has taken some time for it to be digested and in February the Government proposed new laws to enshrine some of its principles. This caused some press activity because the recommendation or suggestion that children should(…)
It appears to be an ever increasing trend that people are divorcing later in life. Many first time divorcees are now over the age of sixty. When children leave for university or leave home for other reasons is often a trigger for people to re-evaluate their situation. It is not uncommon for people then to(…)
I make no apologies for revisiting this issue as it does seem to be a common concern – see the Daily Mail article published on March 10 by Louis de Bernieres. There is a widespread perception that both with the divorce process and any issue or argument over children if it is conducted through the(…)
You might imagine that the main concern for the over sixties is either making a Will, if they don’t already have one, considering changes to an existing Will, or thinking about a Lasting Power of Attorney. Incapacity can be caused for a variety of reasons – Dementia or Alzheimer’s are the obvious causes, but even(…)
This is perhaps a facetious comment, but it reflects the deep suspicion with which many lawyers are viewing the arrival of alternative business structures. But what does this mean for the non-lawyer? Well, the Government would say that it means a better deal for consumers. It means that different businesses can provide legal services. So(…)
The Court of Appeal recently heard a case about just that – what was the effect of the wrong person signing the Will? In 1999 Mr and Mrs Alfred Thomas Rawlings signed mirror Wills leaving their joint estate to one another or, when they were both dead, to Terry Michael Marley – who was not(…)
Hopefully it is clear that I am an advocate of collaborative law, that when parties separate it is far better for all concerned – them, their children, the wider family – if arrangements about how to separate, who is going to look after the children, can be made by agreement. Certainly an agreement that both(…)
The Law Commission is about to examine how assets acquired by either party to the marriage prior to that marriage or civil partnership are to be treated, or assets received by gift or inheritance. To what extent should they be automatically shared. When parties separate the major asset is generally the matrimonial home. Both parties(…)
There has been a lot of media response recently to the Family Justice Review looking into the issue of shared parenting and the government’s response to that. The Family Justice Review chaired by David Norgrove actually stated that they did not feel legislation would be helpful because of their analysis of similar legislation introduced in(…)
Generally speaking when parties separate one person will have realised that the relationship has broken down a long time before the other. They will have been thinking about what to do next; maybe they have met somebody else or just decided that the relationship is not going anywhere and they would rather move on to(…)
There has been a lot of talk in the media recently about the effects of the Christmas holidays on families and the resulting surge in divorce figures. Is this really true? Are lawyers inundated with new divorce cases in January? Well, most of my colleagues would agree with me that it is actually a bit(…)
What does a typical case look like? Let us take a fairly typical example of a couple in business together – the husband is a builder or plumber and his wife is employed by the business doing the books or answering the telephone, in a part time support role as they have young children who(…)
The Law Commission has published its recommendations on reforming the law on intestacy and family provision claims on death, which include a proposal that certain cohabitants should be entitled to inheritance rights when there is no Will. The situation at the moment is that if you are living with someone to whom you are not(…)
What is so special about our offices, situated as they are in beautiful countryside on the Warwickshire / Oxfordshire border, with amazing views over the Feldon Valley and, somewhat amazingly, a herd of Water Buffalo. Well, for a start there is ample free parking, they are easy to find, just off the main Shipston to(…)
As many of you may have heard recently the number of divorces in England and Wales has increased for the first time since 2003. Recent figures from the Office for National Statistics indicate that the number of divorces in England and Wales rose by 4.9% in 2010 to 119,589 compared with 113,949 in 2009. This(…)
As many of you will know, from 6 April 2011 the Ministry of Justice proposed that before anyone made an application to the court in relevant family proceedings (and this is not divorce – relevant means an application in relation to money matters or children issues), the person making the application should contact a mediator.(…)
An interesting report in this week’s Family Law Week states that increasing numbers of businesses are paying some or all of the legal bills incurred by employees separating from their partners. Companies are helping staff pay for divorce in an attempt to retain key personnel. It seems that while recession can mean redundancies, it also(…)
The Supreme Court, England’s most senior court, recently made a decision dealing with the ownership of property when the owners are unmarried. This has consequences for all cohabitees. The case concerns an unmarried couple Ms Jones and Mr Kernott. They met in 1981 and had 2 children together. In 1985 they purchased a house in(…)
As many of you will know, the Child Support Agency is to be replaced CMEC, the Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission and they have now published their proposals for a new statutory child maintenance scheme which, amongst other aspects, includes plans to increase the amount of maintenance paid by parents on state benefits and others(…)
There were several articles in the press recently about the latest divorce figures suggesting that the only reported rise in the divorce rate is amongst the 60+ age range. This doesn’t necessarily mean of course that this is the most popular age for divorce, merely that there is a new trend, the numbers of those(…)
LASTING POWERS OF ATTORNEY – WHAT ARE THEY AND WHAT ARE THEY FOR? ARE THEY FOR YOU? It could be said that a Lasting Power of Attorney is the natural extension of making a Will. People make a Will to clearly set out what is to happen to their possessions when they die, but also(…)
You may have heard the recent decision that legislation is not going to be introduced that gives the perception of a presumed favour of shared parenting when a relationship breaks down. What does this mean? Whenever parties separate and there are children then a decision has to be made as to whom the children are(…)
Most people who set up a new business are doing it for a variety of reasons but generally not primarily to make money. They either feel inspired to try something new, or perhaps have been made redundant and cannot find work any other way, or just feel that they can do something different, better, more(…)
There is good news for people in Banbury, Stratford–upon-Avon, the Cotswolds area who have put off making a Will or need to get it updated. Cotswold Family Law is now taking part in the campaign to write Wills during Will Aid’s Make a Will Month throughout November. Solicitors around the UK donate their time to(…)
If people are separating or divorcing after many years together, particularly when there are children, then obviously there are emotions that may inhibit a calm and rational approach, but surely it is better to try, rather than straight away decide to use the court, an adversarial approach that merely polarises the parties, is extremely stressful(…)
At Cotswold Family Law we try to do things differently, or at least take the approach that it is your divorce, your separation, your assets, therefore we try to deal with the situation in a way that suits you best. We encourage collaboration rather than argument for argument’s sake. We would suggest a round table(…)
There has been a lot of publicity recently about mediation in the context of divorce, but also a lot of misunderstanding. If you are thinking about divorce proceedings you do not have to go to mediation first, it is not compulsory. In April changes were introduced by the Government to encourage couples to consider alternatives(…)
Very often you hear people say “well they’ve been together for years and they have children so the partner must have acquired an interest in the property” or you hear the term “common law marriage” and the implication that this must mean something. Well it doesn’t, there is no such thing as common law marriage.(…)
I am writing this almost at the end of the holiday season, but on a surprisingly sunny day. The sun seems to have been noticeable by its absence during most of July and August and as a result I am just going on holiday in search of it in September – out of the school(…)
Not a very exciting title, but market deregulation, the introduction of alternative business structures will be happening very soon to the legal profession. All that means is that services previously provided only by lawyers can now be provided by others and anyone (presumably not the Mafia!) will be allowed to investt in a legal practice.(…)
I am not sure how many people read the recent newspaper reports about unregulated Will writers. Perhaps not the most exciting of news item in the week that saw horrific events in Sweden, famine in East Africa, Amy Winehouse and of course the continuing phone hacking issues. However, the issue of regulation may actually affect(…)
There is no such thing as a common law spouse. It seems to be a common misunderstanding that merely by living together a couple acquire a particular status, that if a common law husband or wife, which in turn will give them the same rights or entitlements as a married couple. This is not the(…)
The recent conviction of Levi Bellfield for the abduction and murder of thirteen year old Milly Dowler sparked controversy as a result of the family bitterly complaining about the treatment they received during Bellfield’s trial. They quite rightly felt that their rights as victims and individuals were totally superseded by the court system. Quite rightly(…)
From a lawyer’s point of view marriage is not about love – it is a legal transaction. Whatever the feelings of those involved, getting married affects your legal status. By getting married you acquire rights to another person’s property and pension that you do not acquire simply by living together. There is no such person(…)
Social media – something we are always being encouraged to do, along with everything else we have to do, most importantly earning a living, we have to think about the use of social media. I think that for lawyers it is a particularly pertinent question, what is the role of social media, do we have(…)
A Lasting Power of Attorney is usually associated with the elderly or infirm. It is an essential document if you have elderly parents, so that if they become unable to manage their affairs you or whoever is appointed the Attorney can step in and easily sign cheques, deal with bank accounts, pay bills, etc. If(…)
Is it possible to have a happy family holiday post-divorce? No divorcing person needs to be told how important their children are and no divorcing parent needs to be told how stressful the process can be and how difficult in particular the summer holiday period can be. There is the practical difficulties of arranging childcare(…)
I am not sure whether this is a cycling blog or a law blog, I will pass it off as the latter, but we are now in the cycling season. I am training for a series of events and have so far done a 300km (that was about 190 miles), a 400km (which was 261(…)
There has been a lot of talk in the press recently about why people might reveal aspects of their personal life on Facebook to their detriment. We have heard tales of students exploits photographed on Facebook that come back to haunt them when they apply for jobs and increasingly married couples are announcing their divorce(…)
Father’s Day is coming up and for some separated or divorced fathers that can be a day full of painful memories of lost or infrequent contact with their children. There is a perception that the courts are somehow unfair or biased towards mothers, but this really isn’t the case anymore. Most judges after all are(…)
Everyone, young or old, should make a Will, not a popular pastime admittedly, but more important than you might think. There are serious consequences of not having a Will. Should you die before you partner, if you are not married your partner is not your next of kin and will not inherit unless you make(…)
This hasn’t got a lot to do with family law, although one needs to realise that children don’t simply disappear at 18, they seem to remain dependent for quite a number of years after that, whether or not they go to university. All my friends with children returning during the holidays have the same woes(…)
From 6th April 2011 everything changed, or was said to have changed, in the family courts. All the court forms were changed and the major innovation was the introduction of mediation – as though mediation something new! Everyone contemplating a divorce or separation will have been through some form of mediation, even if they may(…)
We are just in the throes of moving office which is becoming ever more complicated. It is not just that we seem to be dependent on BT to produce line and internet connection, but we are faced with completely empty rooms and we have to lay out two offices and a reception area. This means(…)
When people separate they are generally going through enormous distress and anxiety, so how can it be in any way good? There is the point that although the process can be a very painful one, for some people they end up in a better place emotionally. The relationship, for whatever reason has not worked and(…)