Since joining Dutton Gregory in 2018, Jon Whettingsteel has progressed from solicitor to partner and head of the family department, a role that allows him to combine his legal expertise with his passion for supporting people during life’s most challenging moments. He is passionate about campaigning for change, particularly around grandparents’ rights, and hopes to use his career to inspire future lawyers to see their role as more than just giving advice but helping improve the legal system itself.
What was your career path to your current role?
Law wasn’t my first choice of career. I wanted to be a chef, and for years when I was at school this was what I was working towards, however when I spent two weeks working in a hotel kitchen for work experience when I was 15 years old I realised this wasn’t the career for me.
I’d always found the law an interesting subject, as it is something that is involved in every aspect of life, whether that’s in buying goods and services, advertising a product or having a family. I decided to study law at A Level, and the rest is history as they say. I really enjoyed learning about the cases and legislation and applying it to real life situations.
For my journey into law, I took a year out before my degree to try and gain some experience working in a law firm. I went through the phone book and wrote to around 40 different law firms with a CV and cover letter, asking for any work opportunities. Of those 40 letters I can still recall that I got two replies, one saying “no thank you” and the other saying they were going to advertise for an office junior in a couple of weeks’ time, so I had saved them the trouble. It was very much about being in the right place at the right time.
I worked at the firm for a year before my degree, and continued to work there alongside my studies. I was lucky enough to be offered a training contract at the end of my studies, and trained and worked there for a number of years.
I am still very grateful, and in contact with the solicitor who gave me that first opportunity and job and owe a lot to them. I try and repay that level of trust and opportunity by helping support and mentor future lawyers, as well as supporting Dutton Gregory’s work experience programme giving other’s the opportunity I was afforded.
What keeps you motivated in your work?
Family law is a really difficult area of law. It will never be a 9-5 job, and you support people going through real highs and lows in their lives. For me, the thing that makes the job the most rewarding is seeing the positive difference you can make to a client from that first day you meet them, when they are often going through a separation and one of the worst times in their life, through to the last day, when they are more positive and optimistic for the future and new beginnings.
What has been the best development in family law in the last 20 years?
It’s yet to be seen, but it might be the introduction of Pathfinder which completely changes the way children act cases are dealt with. This involves a lot more frontloading, as well as reducing the number of hearings and time parties spend going through court. I do have some concerns about making sure speed and statistics aren’t prioritised over fairness and taking the time to obtain and consider all the evidence, but anything that can reduce court delays and the amount of time parents are involved in disputes over their children can only be a positive.
And the worst?
Without a doubt this would be the introduction of the Legal Aid Sentencing Punishment of Offenders Act, specifically the changes to legal aid which meant the number of people who could access legal aid assistance was decimated overnight. We are still seeing the effects over 10 years later with the court having a backlog of hearings and a large number of litigants in person who can no longer access legal advice and assistance.
If you could bring in one new piece of legislation for the sector, what would it be and why?
I’m torn between two, both of which are also being campaigned by working groups, including Resolution. One would be a reform of cohabitee rights. There are so many people who think they ascertain rights as ‘a common law spouse’, whereas in reality there is no such thing, so the rights someone has could potentially be the same whether they have been living together for three weeks or 30 years. There should be better and clearer legislation on the rights of cohabitees as the law is currently based on the court trying to ascertain what parties intended.
The other is better recognition of grandparent’s rights. I act for a lot of grandparents in child arrangements proceedings. I know from my own personal experience how important grandparents are in a child’s life, and it can be really difficult to cases where a child will not have a relationship with a grandparent because of difficulties between the grandparent and their own child.
What piece of legislation would you take off the statute books and why?
You might be able to guess from the above, but it would be the changes to Legal Aid, and whilst I wouldn’t necessarily want to repeal all of LASPO, I think a review of the eligibility for legal aid, and the right for access to justice and legal advice needs reviewing.
What’s the best piece of advice anyone ever gave you regarding your career?
The best advice I was given is to take every opportunity to try something new, and don’t be afraid to say yes. It’s something I still do now, and as a result I’ve had amazing opportunities including presenting webinars, giving talks to a room full of people, jumping out of planes, and once walking 19 miles in a PVC catsuit (for charity I would add!).
What’s the best piece of advice you’d like to give to someone just starting out?
The advice I often give when I talk to future lawyers is don’t pretend to be someone else to get a job, because you will then have to spend the rest of your working career being someone you are not, and unhappy as a result. There are so many different law firms out there, and each one is different, and find a firm that lets you be yourself.
Be the best version of yourself, not who you think someone else wants you to be.
Tell us something people may be surprised to know about you…
As well as being a lawyer, I’m a Brown Belt in Brazilian Jiujitsu and have a background in mixed martial arts, jiu jitsu and cage fighting. Fighting for justice in the day, and as a hobby in the evening!
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