Honor Giles is a partner at Maguire Family Law. In addition to her practice as a solicitor, Honor also works as a mediator, having undertaken mediation training with Resolution in 2020. She has specialised in family law since she qualified as a solicitor and has extensive experience in advising clients in relation to divorce, financial matters, pre and post nuptial agreements, children matters, domestic abuse and the breakdown of relationships concerning cohabiting couples.
What was your career path to your current role?
After finishing my degree at the University of Sheffield in 2012, I applied for training contracts and was offered a place with a full-service law firm in the West Midlands, to start after completing the Legal Practice Course at the College of Law in Birmingham. I really enjoyed my training contact and training in different areas, including corporate, commercial property, family and private client.
From my first few days in the family department, I knew that was the area of law for me and I have specialised in family law since qualifying in 2015. I moved from the Midlands to Cheshire in 2017 and started working for Maguire Family Law in March 2017.
Did you have any other career ambitions?
When initially looking at university courses, I actually started looking at courses in the medical profession, to include nursing and physiotherapy. I think I knew I wanted to be in a profession that helped people at a difficult time in their life but I was unsure whether I definitely wanted to be a nurse or physiotherapist, so I didn’t want to sign up for such a specific degree that I wasn’t certain on.
I then decided to do law, as I thought that if I decided I didn’t want to be a lawyer the degree would be relevant to lots of professions. When I started at university I quickly realised how much I enjoyed studying law and decided I wanted to pursue a career as a lawyer. This was cemented even more after I started doing pro-bono work through the university’s legal clinic, as I really enjoyed helping people who attended the clinic for legal advice and support.
What keeps you motivated in your work?
Wanting to do the best job for clients. As family lawyers, we meet clients at a very difficult time in their life. I enjoy building relationships with clients and working hard for them, with a view to achieving the best outcome so they can move forwards and onto the next stage in their life.
What has been the best development in family law in the last 20 years?
I think that the increasing prevalence and popularity of non-court dispute resolution options, such as mediation, collaborative law, neutral evaluation and arbitration. It means we have a variety of options we can use to help clients outside of court, avoiding the time, stress and cost of court proceedings.
And the worst?
The cuts to legal aid – this has drastically limited people’s ability to access legal representation and has led to many litigants in person representing themselves, often struggling to navigate the court system. It is important that there is fair access to legal advice and representation, especially when dealing with matters that have such a big impact on a person’s life, such as in family law, where cases relate to people’s children and their finances, etc.
If you could bring in one new piece of legislation for the sector, what would it be and why?
Changing the law in respect of cohabiting partners, as they don’t have the same rights or financial claims as married couples or civil partners on separation. I think this is important to provide clarity and consistency, as cohabitation is one of the fastest growing family structures.
A Ministry of Justice reform consultation on financial remedies, cohabitation rights and nuptial agreements is due to be published in Spring 2026 so I’m hopeful this will make significant headway with reforming this area.
What piece of legislation would you take off the statute books and why?
I am in support of the government’s recent announcement to remove the presumption that it is always in the best interests of a child to have the involvement of both of their parents.
Whilst, of course, in many cases that may well be what is best for a child, in some cases the risk is this assumption can be used by a perpetrator to try and continue to perpetuate abuse. As such, I think the removal of this presumption is important as it sends the clear message that the safety of a child is the absolute priority and that there is no presumption of the involvement of or contact with both parents.
What’s the best piece of advice anyone ever gave you regarding your career?
I’ve had lots of great supervisors and mentors in my career, particularly early on when I was a trainee and junior solicitor. I’m very grateful to those people for sharing their knowledge and experience with me.
Something that has stuck with me is to expect the unexpected. This is important in family law as it can be fast paced. It is important to be able to be flexible, to respond and deal with unexpected situations as they arise. The circumstances of a case can change very quickly depending on the other party’s behaviour and what’s going on in the client’s life at that particular point in time.
What’s the best piece of advice you’d like to give to someone just starting out?
Don’t be afraid of pushing yourself outside of your comfort zone, and say yes to as many opportunities as you can. That’s how you learn, grow and gain lots of great experience, which then becomes invaluable in your role.
Tell us something people may be surprised to know about you…
When not at work, I love being in the countryside and outdoors, whether that is walking my dog, trail running with my local running club and open water swimming…although preferably in the spring and summer when the weather (and water) is nice and warm!
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