Today, The Centre for Social Justice thinktank published a press release, stating that one million children in the UK grow up in a “man desert” with no contact with their father or a male role model or a male teacher.…
Facebook and family law
Social media certainly has the capacity to get people into legal difficulties. The High Court found last week that a tweet posted by Sally Bercow was libellous, and as a result, she is going to be paying out damages for…
The dangers of divorce for the self employed
A recent case has highlighted the dangers of divorce for the self employed. If you are a PAYE employee, your annual salary is set out in your P60 and payslips. If you are self-employed, your income is likely to be…
Same sex marriage, opposite sex marriage, civil partnerships for all? These labels matter.
I heard an excellent interview on Monday night on the radio during the recent debate in the House of Commons about the Marriage (Same Sex) Couples Bill. The excited presenter was crossing between the House of Commons, to find out…
Who decides where children live when parents separate?
When parents separate, decisions have to be made about where their children are going to live. The court’s view is that the parents are best left to make these arrangements for themselves, as long as there are no Social…
What or who is FDR?
An FDR is a Financial Dispute Resolution hearing, a meeting held at court for the purposes of negotiation and discussion. It is the second of three court appointments in a financial remedy claim on divorce, in which the couple in…
Is it time to renew that pre-nup?
Last month I was invited to talk to a national law firm’s Wealth Preservation team about pre-nups. To talk about pre-nups, you conversely need to start by talking about what happens if there is no pre-nup. What is the default…
Do you need to use a family law solicitor in your divorce?
I was asked to explain yesterday why divorcing couples insist on engaging solicitors. Would it not be easier if people sorted these things out for themselves? I had time to think this over whilst I was doing a triathlon yesterday.…
Words that burn
I heard this week on Radio 4’s Today programme that Dothraki is an actual language. For those of you who have not yet been caught up in the phenomenon that is Game of Thrones, this is the language spoken by…
Divorce – and the clean break
I have noticed that there is often a difference between clients and their lawyers as to what they think is going to be the most important document in that divorce. A client’s goal is usually to secure the “Decree Absolute”, the…