Children Law

grandparents' rights

The breakdown of a marriage, civil partnership or other long-term relationship can have a major impact on grandparents’ relationships with their grandchildren. As a grandparent, you may have been actively involved in the upbringing of children and now fear being separated from them. Sometimes you may even feel you have to act to safeguard their welfare.

In our work we have found that the courts often consider that support from grandparents and members of the wider family is in the best interests of the child.  

Grandparents and other family members can make an application to the Courts to allow them to play a role in the lives of children in their family, including applications for Child Arrangement Orders (formerly residence and contact orders) specifying where a child lives, who they spend time with, and determining other important issues in a child’s life. Our leading family law barristers can give you expert legal advice, and help with drafting any necessary legal applications and other relevant documents. 

As barristers we specialise in family court proceedings and offer effective representation along with clear, practical advice. Our experienced and approachable barristers can guide you through the options available to you.

child arrangements and contact disputes

If you were part of a couple with children, and your relationship has broken down, it can be very difficult to agree arrangements for your children going forward. With tensions running high, you need to find solutions that are in your children’s best interests and provide them with stability.

Parents can struggle to agree on important issues in their childrens’ lives. These may include deciding who a child should live with, how much time they spend with each parent and other family members, if there are any risks that need to be protected against, where they should go to school, and even whether a parent should be allowed to move the child away to another area or another country. Our specialists in International Family Law are adept at handling cases that cross country borders.

Whether you are going through a divorce, the dissolution of a civil partnership or the end of a cohabiting relationship, our expert family law barristers can give you sound legal advice on all legal aspects of your separation, including child arrangements. We will help you consider your options and understand the likely outcome of any court proceedings so you can make informed decisions. 

Our expert mediators may be able to help you find a solution out of court. But if court action is unavoidable, our leading barristers will provide representation, based on your unique circumstances, to help reach the best outcome for you and your children.

child abduction

Child abduction is a highly complex area of law that requires expert legal advice and decisive action. If the wrong steps are taken, these can have far-reaching and permanent consequences. If you have good reasons to believe that a child is at risk, it is possible to take action to help prevent child abduction before it happens. 

Whether you want to take measures to stop a child being taken abroad, or are looking to recover an abducted child, our family law barristers can help. We regularly act in cases of child abduction in England and Wales, and have extensive experience advising on cross-border abduction cases through our work in International Family Law. Sometimes you need to act very quickly and our experienced barristers are used to dealing with urgent and emergency child abduction cases where swift action is needed.

care proceedings

Care and Supervision order proceedings are issued when a local authority considers that a court order is needed in order to protect a child from significant harm. In cases where social services have become involved in your family life, our barristers can provide expert advice and representation for parents, children (often through a court-appointed guardian), grandparents and other family members.

With the right legal advice from our children law barristers, many parents are able to work through difficulties and ensure that their children remain with them. With empathy and commitment to defending your rights, we can advise and represent you throughout the legal process. 

Our barristers are used to dealing with urgent and emergency child protection orders. They will be able to act quickly and professionally for your family. We know that each case is different and work hard to provide the best service tailored to your individual needs.

Legal aid may be available in public law cases. Whilst we cannot accept public access instructions under the legal aid scheme, we can direct you to suitable solicitors. You may be able to instruct solicitors who then arrange for you to be represented by one of our specialist barristers using the legal aid scheme.