Spotlight shone on international surrogacy
In this article Ralph Marnham, Barrister at 4PB, shares his insight into international surrogacy. International surrogacy has come under the spotlight recently with the news that the Chinese actor Zheng Shuang was dropped by the luxury fashion brand Prada, after her former partner accused her of abandoning their two US-born surrogate children. The row erupted […]
Lawshare continues to grow and help legal sector
Having the right support in place can have a huge impact on the well-being of an individual. With mental health and well-being now at the forefront of a lot of people’s minds, it is always nice to see what different avenues are available to those in the legal sector to garner a little extra support. […]
Lubna Shuja becomes vice president of Law Society
Lubna Shuja has become the Law Society of England and Wales’ vice president raising the prospect for the first time of two consecutive women presidents in the organisation’s history when she steps up to the top job in 2022. With I. Stephanie Boyce now installed as president, it’s also the first time two people of […]
New requirement for an independent AML audit from the regulators
On the 20th January 2021 the LSAG published new Anti-Money Laundering Guidance for the legal sector which states that ‘The practice must conduct an independent audit of the adequacy and effectiveness of its AML policies, controls and procedures’. Legal Eye offers an audit service to fulfil this requirement. The audit report summarises an evaluation of […]
On anniversary of lockdown DIY divorces rise
The 23rd March 2021 marks the first anniversary in which the UK went in to a national lockdown to begin its fightback against the coronavirus. It’s a year that many of us would like to forget. There has been lots of uncertainty, juggling working from home, homeschooling and for some taking those tentative steps back […]
New Nightingale Courtrooms open across the country
HMCTS have vowed to open 60 Nightingale Courts by the end of this month, as they aim to clear the backlog of cases that need to be heard. Five new courtrooms were opened last week in London, Wolverhampton and Liverpool. The new Nightingale Courtrooms are in: Wolverhampton Park Hall Hotel providing 2 courtrooms The Hilton […]
The tax consequences of separation
By James Ward, Head of Private Client, and Jane Keir, Partner in Family & Divorce at Kingsley Napley LLP. The last 12 months have put an awful lot of pressure on the family unit and sadly this has led to a spike in separation and divorce amongst married couples. With the end of the tax […]
Lord Chief Justice commends courts for keeping people safe during pandemic
Today is the first anniversary of the day the UK went into lockdown, in a bid to tackle the coronavirus pandemic, The Lord Chief Justice, Lord Burnett of Maldon has shared his message regarding the recovery of the courts over the past 12 months. On Judiciary.uk, his message reads: “It is almost a year since […]
Covid-19 and child maintenance
Harriet Donavan is a solicitor at Stowe Family Law, shares her insight into the impact the pandemic has had on child maintenance and how practitioners can best support families navigating difficult times in their lives. Thousands of single parents have had their child maintenance payments reduced or stopped due to the financial impact of the […]
A practitioner’s guide to Litigation Funding
The last year has been a challenging time for many and has undoubtedly had an impact on personal relationships. A host of personal and financial challenges prevail and can inevitably lead to family breakdowns and a rise in the need for family law support. Since the pandemic hit the Office for National Statistics released figures […]
Intercountry adoption: exception requests
The Department for Education (DfE) has published information about exception requests to adopt children from countries with special restrictions. The guidance is aimed at prospective adopters and outlines the Department for Education’s process for handling exception requests to adopt children from countries where special restrictions are in place. The information reflects and expands on the […]
Is history repeating itself for the Royals?
A few years ago, when the relationship was becoming serious, I wrote a blog post about Prince Harry and Meghan Markle from the perspective of a divorce lawyer. Given the two horrendous Royal divorces of the 90s, on which I used to frequently comment in the media, it struck me there were even more serious […]
The importance of setting boundaries
When their relationship breaks down, our clients are dealing with a turmoil of emotions, which often leaves them confused and vulnerable. To make matters worse, some boundaries in their new lives can become blurred. For example, one ex-partner kept his bikes at my client’s house, another returned there for his daily shower; both clearly exerting […]
Content is King webinar recap
Last week we hosted the first in our 8 weekly content marketing webinars for Today’s Media. It was so exciting to see such a good turn out and have lots of great feedback around the content. In our piece this week we just wanted to cover what happened at our webinar if you missed it, […]
Call for evidence: violence against women and girls
The Home Office has re-opened its call for evidence seeking further input from women and girls who have been subject to violence. On the gov.uk website, it states: “We are seeking your views to help inform the development of the government’s next Tackling Violence Against Women and Girls Strategy. We are particularly keen to hear […]
Family Law firms urged to prepare for post-lockdown demand
As the end of the third national lockdown approaches, law firms must prepare for a dramatic and sustained spike in new enquiry volumes, according to research from Moneypenny. Moneypenny handles more than 2 million legal calls and live chats each year for more than 1,000 legal firms in the UK, including 60 of the Top […]
Cyber crime and the increased risks of working from home
Paul Saunders, Managing Director of Legal Eye talks to Tom Lyes, Director of Engagement for Lawyer Checker, about the rise in cyber security risks caused by recent changes to working patterns and working from home. This article was submitted to be published by Legal Eye as part of their advertising agreement with Today’s Family Lawyer. […]
New Children’s Commissioner for England begins post
Dame Rachel de Souza has now begun her term as Children’s Commissioner for England, after taking over from predecessor Anne Longfield. In her role Dame Rachel de Souza speaks up for children and young people so that policymakers and the people who have an impact on their live take their views and interests into account […]
CMA launches study of children’s social care provision
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has launched a study of children’s social care provision to establish why a lack of availability and increasing costs could be leading to the needs of children in care not being met. The CMA will examine concerns around high prices paid by local authorities and inadequate supply of appropriate […]
What does it mean to be a woman in family law today?
In honour of International Women’s Day this week, Today’s Family Lawyer asked professionals in the family law industry to give us their thoughts on what it’s like to be a woman working in law today and any challenges they face. Marilyn Stowe, UK’s most famous family lawyers and legal entrepreneurs said: “When I was at […]