London Divorce Solicitors
Recognised by Chambers, Legal 500 and ePrivateclient for family law services
Our family law expertise
Our experienced Family Team have many years’ experience, providing advice and support to families on all issues involving divorce and separation.
Our reputation within the market is second to none, with Legal 500 commenting that the team are praised for handling “the most high value and complex of cases with ease. They have also dealt with some highly complex child arrangements and cross-border issues involving difficult surrogacy disputes”.
Clients can expect sensible and robust divorce legal advice and representation with a client service that will ensure they feel supported through the entire process.
Contact our London divorced team
If you’re based in London or the surrounding areas, give our friendly divorce team a call on 0345 128 6960 to see how we can help you. Our office is in central London and easily accessible in Piccadilly. The team are also able to arrange remote consultations and support you with minimal need to meet in person if that is preferable.
How our divorce lawyers can help you
Clients praise the team for being with them every step of the way through their divorce and other family law matters, providing them with emotional and practical support, as well as legal advice.
The team will deal with your situation with discretion and sensitivity, providing the highest standards of professional representation, to help you get your life back on track.
Our process
We will put together the best divorce legal team for your case to help you achieve your desired outcome. You will find us to be approachable and supportive throughout the process.
Your appointed divorce solicitor will guide you towards the best outcome for you and your family. We will aim to keep you out of court by first trying to use the various dispute resolution options; mediation, collaborative law, solicitor-led negotiation or arbitration. By resolving your divorce without the need for court proceedings, we can keep delay to a minimum and reduce your exposure to costs.
In some circumstances, we may advise you that it is in your best interests to proceed with a court application. If you have to go to court, you are in safe hands because we have experienced divorce solicitors who will help and support you every step of the way. We often deal with complex cases involving businesses, trusts, pension and foreign assets. We use the strength of our tax, trust, property, employment and company lawyers to help you keep costs down, whilst at the same time providing you with the specialist advice complex cases require. Not all family law firms have the strength of this divorce advice under one roof.
We work closely with our network of private client advisers, for example financial advisers and mortgage brokers, to help you obtain any non-legal assistance and advice you may need to, more practically, move on with your life once the legal aspects are finalised.
If you are a wealthy individual who would like to preserve as much of your wealth as possible on divorce, or you are a celebrity or person with a public profile then we have a specialist platinum service to suit your individual needs. We will keep your divorce or separation out of the media.
Key contact
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FAQs
The law regarding prenuptial agreements has developed over the last 10 years significantly. The Court are now, in light of developments in the case law, giving great weight to prenuptial agreements that satisfy the following criteria:-
a) Being signed at least 28 days before the marriage.
b) Both parties having had independent legal advice.
c) The agreement being based on full financial disclosure.
d) The agreement being fair and reasonable.
Any agreement that does not enable one party to meet their needs is unlikely to be upheld by the Court if there is a later divorce. Agreements that are fair and enable both parties to meet their needs stand a good chance of being upheld by the court.
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Once we have identified what the assets are with you, we will work with you and advise you about how to achieve a fair division of the matrimonial assets. We will review which of the assets are “matrimonial” and how these can be divided to meet the Section 25 Matrimonial Causes 1972 Act criteria which includes looking at what would be fair and just, reviewing your respective ages and assets, looking at the pension provision, reviewing any health issues either of you have and ensuring that the children and your own needs are met in so far as capital, housing, pension and income are concerned. There is no one answer about the division of assets and often there are several solutions that may work for you. This is an area of law where our advice will be very specific and detailed.
Often there is an assessment made as part of the financial disclosure process of assets that may have been held by either party before marriage. If cohabitation moved seamlessly into marriage, this can mean that assets built up together while cohabiting are taken into account and treated as matrimonial ones. For assets held before any cohabitation it is not unreasonable for there to be suggestions that these assets should be protected and not shared. The extent to which this argument is likely to be successful will depend on the value of the assets, the extent to which the other assets that are available meet the needs of both parties and the length of the marriage.
Any financial agreement that is reached is always on the basis of full and financial disclosure. Obtaining this disclosure is one of the most important parts of the process. If full financial disclosure isn’t being provided by your spouse there are steps that can be taken to enforce this disclosure through the Court with enforcement options. There may be experts that can become involved to help trace assets and identify the extent of wealth if this is of concern. We use trusted third parties to assist with such difficulties where necessary.
In certain circumstances, if an order is based on disclosure that proves to be intentionally misleading the court order can be set aside so that everything can be relooked at.
Any welfare decisions relating to your children require all those with parental responsibility to agree. Welfare decisions include moving out of the jurisdiction (or moving away from the locality of the family home). If you both agree to this move (and have this confirmed in writing) there is no need for there to be a Court Order unless immigration requirements need detailed evidence of the same. If the other parent does not agree, mediation is an option to try to resolve these issues. If mediation is not successful in resolving where the children will live, an application can be made to the Court and the Court can determine in which jurisdiction the children should be allowed to stay/ move to by reviewing what is in their best interest, and all of the options available.
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Mediation is an opportunity for couples to discuss issues that are relating to their separation/divorce. This can include the arrangements for their children, the financial issues and any disputes about the divorce process. Mediation meetings are without prejudice which enables both parties to have the freedom to speak and make proposals and discuss issues without being fearful of these being reported back to a Judge.
This enables options to be explored without being binding on anybody until everybody has had the benefit of legal advice and has decided that they wish to formulate that position into a Court Order where appropriate. Mediation is a process where there will be practical consideration of solutions to enable everybody to consider each other’s views and reach compromises where appropriate.
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Why choose our London Divorce Solicitors
- The team are ranked one of the UK’s leading family law teams by the Legal 500 and Chambers & Partners directories for services including divorce law
- We have a successful record in reaching financial agreements, without the need to go to court, thereby avoiding costly litigation.
- We are however also robust and sensible if your divorce needs to go through court. We will provide you with support and clear advice and represent you throughout the process
- You will get city expertise at a range of competitive fees to suit your financial circumstances
Did you know we have a full-service family law team?
Our team of surrogacy lawyers provide expert legal advice to help intended parents create and build their family through surrogacy. We offer a personalised service supporting families every step of the way. We specialise in both international and UK surrogacy law, from creating agreements to obtaining parental orders.
We can help you navigate the legal issues surrounding surrogacy, provide advice on the practical arrangements too as well as untangling the complexities of finances, expense payments and immigration issues.
Testimonials
“I thought my team was amazing. I was impressed every step of the way and feel I couldn’t have been any better represented.”
Client testimonial
“Thank you for making a horrendous process so much more bearable and less painful, especially through Covid when things were difficult anyway.”
Client testimonial
“Sound advice, given in a very open and non-judgemental way.”
Client testimonial
“The team were amazing and always made sure that I felt supported, especially when I wasn’t sure about what to do and what something meant. I could...
Client testimonial
Contact us today
Whatever your legal needs, our wide ranging expertise is here to support you and your business, so let’s start your legal journey today and get you in touch with the right lawyer to get you started.
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