Legal Practice Notes

The cohabitant The Inheritance ( Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 ( I( PFD) A 1975) allows a claim by someone who cohabited with the deceased, and applies to partners of the deceased whether opposite sex or same sex. To advance a claim, the applicant must demonstrate: that cohabitation continued throughout the two years immediately prior to the deceased’s death that they shared the same household as the deceased that they lived with the deceased as their husband or wife, or civil partner The court will consider the realities of relationships, including brief separations, for example due to employment requiring time away from the family home. Likewise, a period of active service in the armed forces will also not be held against the claimant. Accordingly, the requirement of living together right up to death is not always interpreted...

Client care means delivering an appropriate standard of service to clients. This Practice Note explains the Solicitors Regulation Authority ( SRA) framework governing client care, service quality and competence, together with client care letters and the particulars they must include, such as cost limits, interim and statute bills, complaints procedures, termination of instructions, and information that must be provided where a client is either privately or publicly funded. It also considers the Resolution Code of Practice, Law Society guidance, and the position of the Legal Ombudsman ( Le O) on client care. Solicitors Regulation Authority regulatory regime The key elements of the SRA Standards and Regulations include the SRA: Principles Code of Conduct for Solicitors, registered European lawyers ( RELs) and registered foreign lawyers ( RFLs) Code of Conduct for Firms Accounts Rules Glossary For further guidance, see Practice Note: The...

The use of the inherent jurisdiction of the High Court to authorise the deprivation of liberty of children and young people has been growing in recent years. This trend covers looked-after children where the character of the care arrangements amounts to a deprivation of liberty, and scenarios in which a secure accommodation placement is required but no places are available, so deprivation of liberty must occur in a different placement. Article 5(1) of the European Convention on Human Rights ( ECHR) states that nobody shall be deprived of liberty except: in specified categories (for example, ‘persons of unsound mind’), and following a procedure prescribed by law See Practice Note: The deprivation of liberty safeguards— Deprivation of liberty......

Practice Note This Practice Note explains when a child can be joined as a party to public law proceedings, outlines the process for appointing a children's guardian and a solicitor, and describes the guardian's functions, including possible conflicts of interest. It further clarifies the circumstances in which the court may diverge from a guardian's advice, and when a solicitor may represent a child without a guardian, even where the child is unable to provide instructions. It also addresses procedural detail and potential conflict of interest scenarios too......

This Practice Note explains the measures available to obtain information to find a child abducted into this jurisdiction, including seeking a location or disclosure order. It also describes the government agencies and other organisations that can be asked for information, and the procedure to trace and recover a child, together with other ways of locating and retrieving a child, for example under the provisions of the Family Law Act 1986 ( FLA 1996). For practical guidance on child abduction proceedings more generally, see the following... Practice Notes: Child abduction—emergency remedies Child abduction—introduction and issuing proceedings (1980 Hague Convention) Child abduction—1996 Hague Convention Child abduction—procedure and evidence ( Hague Convention) In some matters, the effect of the UK’s withdrawal from the EU ( Brexit) may need to be considered. At 11pm ( GMT) on 31 December 2020, the Brexit...

It is fairly common for bankruptcy and divorce to be underway at the same time, and for each process to affect the other. For background and a fuller explanation of their interplay, see Practice Note: The impact of bankruptcy on divorce proceedings. Because bankruptcy can bear directly on divorce-based financial relief applications (often referred to as property adjustment orders), situations do arise in which a less scrupulous spouse may permit, or even precipitate, their own bankruptcy so as to derail existing divorce proceedings. In those scenarios, both the family court and the bankruptcy court hold powers, where the facts justify it, to scrutinise and challenge the making of the bankruptcy order and the overall consequences it produces. A summary of the challenges available The non‑bankrupt divorcing spouse has avenues to challenge, available in both the bankruptcy and family courts where appropriate and...

This Practice Note outlines what is required when a care or supervision order in public law children cases concludes, whether through termination, discharge, variation, or substitution. It further explains the rules on extending such orders, setting out the relevant provisions governing any continuation. Care orders—general A care order lapses on the child’s 18th birthday or if otherwise brought to an end in another lawful manner. Where a child arrangements order specifies with whom the child is to live, any care order, including an interim care order ( ICO), is terminated. An adoption order wholly extinguishes a care order in its entirety. A placement order pauses a care order and does not extinguish it; if the placement order is revoked, the care order resumes. A placement order discharges any contact order made under section 34 of the Children Act 1989 ( Ch A 1989); hence, any...

The aim of networking and business development is not to secure sales, harvest leads or push a promotion. Trying to achieve those outcomes by meeting people one by one is an inefficient route. Rather, the role of networking is to raise the visibility and credibility of your firm and of individual lawyers. As a by-product, it will often create a trusted web of contacts and suppliers. First steps Before you tackle networking for the first time, take these essential, practical preliminaries: Consider where your firm sits in the market, and if there is a marketing department, speak to them — they will be pleased to help lawyers convey the firm’s message. In a firm without a marketing department, work out what distinguishes the firm from others — is it a legal attribute such as international expertise or in-house advocacy? Or is it...

This Practice Note explores how a bankruptcy affecting either party interacts with one or more financial orders already made in matrimonial or civil partnership proceedings. It also outlines bankruptcy essentials for family practitioners, including how income payments orders and income payments agreements can influence both the payer and the recipient. For direction on how a bankruptcy petition or order may affect prospective or ongoing financial remedy proceedings, see Practice Note: The impact of bankruptcy on divorce proceedings. For broader guidance, see Practice Note: Dos and don’ts for family lawyers when dealing with bankruptcy. The consequences of bankruptcy for existing financial orders vary according to the nature of the order and whether, in general terms, the bankrupt is the paying or the receiving party. Bankruptcy—the basics An individual can be made bankrupt in two principal ways: By the filing of a bankruptcy petition at court by...

The position of a personal pension on bankruptcy Once a bankruptcy order is made, the bankrupt’s estate automatically passes to the official receiver, or to an insolvency practitioner appointed at that time, who serves as the first trustee in bankruptcy. Certain items are excluded, such as tools and equipment needed for the bankrupt’s trade, and clothing and similar essentials necessary to meet basic domestic needs. This Practice Note explains what happens to an individual’s pension entitlements when a bankruptcy order is made. It looks at the impact of bankruptcy on occupational, personal and state pension arrangements. Bankruptcies predating 29 May 2000 This section applies to individuals made bankrupt following bankruptcy petitions lodged before 29 May 2000. Rights gained under personal and occupational pension schemes are generally recoverable by the trustee in bankruptcy. A debtor’s contractual rights under these arrangements are treated as choses in action within the broad...

This Practice Note summarises the law in relation to adultery in divorce proceedings that were issued prior to 6 April 2022 . It outlines how adultery is defined within divorce cases in the context of divorce proceedings and the proof required to establish it, including reliance on confessions or admissions. It also addresses intolerability, the consequences of spouses remaining together after becoming aware of adultery, and the status of any co-respondent named. The Divorce, Dissolution and Separation Act 2020 ( DDSA 2020) took effect on 6 April 2022. Proceedings issued by the court on or after 6 April 2022 are governed by DDSA 2020 and are subject to its provisions, as well as procedural changes under the amended Family Procedure Rules 2010 ( FPR 2010), SI 2010/2955. For further information and context, see Practice Note: Introduction to the Divorce, Dissolution and Separation Act...

Practice Note This Practice Note summarises the fundamental principles for drafting a financial consent order, addressing the preparation and layout of the draft, and describing the financial remedy order created as part of the standard orders project. It provides guidance on: undertakings provisions for periodical payments pensions drafting where potential insolvency is in issue It also explains the steps for lodging the consent order with the court, including where the order is filed online. Standard financial orders have been released under the standard orders project—see Practice Note: Standard orders—general principles and Precedent: Standard order 2.1—financial remedy order for a precedent consent order. The President of the Family Division has strongly encouraged reliance on these standard orders. In matters with no substantive proceedings, applications for a consent order are typically made online when the applicant is represented (unless an exception applies)—see Practice Note: Online applications for financial consent orders for...

When weighing up whether, and in what way, to pursue a claim for judicial review, your opening task is to assess if that procedure is the suitable mechanism for resolving the issues presented by the matter before you. For additional help, see Practice Note: Judicial review—what it is and when it can be used. Time limits If judicial review is the route chosen, the next step will typically be to confirm there is still time to commence proceedings. Under CPR 54.5, claims for judicial review (apart from the three exceptions referred to below) must be issued promptly and, in any event, within three months of the date on which the grounds first arose. Promptness is an overriding requirement, and you should not assume a claim is in time merely because it is brought within three months. Accordingly, once the basis for the challenge has...

A fact-finding hearing is the first of two parts of a ‘split hearing’. A fact‑finding hearing forms the opening stage of a split hearing comprising two distinct parts. At this initial phase, the court determines the facts on matters it has itself pinpointed, as recorded in the order listing the fact‑finding hearing that has been set down. This Practice Note addresses the public law context. As Mac Donald J observed in Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea v NM, the choice whether to convene a fact‑finding hearing is among the most significant case management decisions in proceedings under Part IV of the Children Act, and it is not necessarily a simple one. On 22 April 2014, the Public Law Outline ( PLO) governing care, supervision and other proceedings under Part IV of the Children Act 1989 came into force under the Family...

This Practice Note explains the defence available under article 13(b) to resist an application brought pursuant to the Hague Convention of 25 October 1980 on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction (the 1980 Hague Convention), namely that returning the child would create a grave risk of physical or psychological harm, or would otherwise place the child in an intolerable situation. For practical guidance on the narrow defences that can be advanced in answer to a 1980 Hague Convention application, consult the following Practice Notes: Child abduction—introduction to defences under the 1980 Hague Convention Defences under the 1980 Hague Convention—child settled in new jurisdiction Defences under the 1980 Hague Convention—consent, acquiescence and non-exercise of rights of custody Defences under the 1980 Hague Convention—child’s objections to return, and Child...

This Practice Note explains who qualifies for public funding in care proceedings, what that funding covers, including expert witness fees and translation charges, and what items require prior authority before they are covered. It also outlines how to seek prior authority and offers guidance on what requests are likely to be approved. Public funding for parties is administered by the Legal Aid Agency ( LAA), an executive agency of the Ministry of Justice. Public funding means the relevant party’s solicitor applies to the LAA for a legal aid certificate and, if issued, may carry out work for the publicly funded client, with the solicitor’s costs and disbursements repaid by the LAA at the end of the case. Who is eligible for public funding in care...

Section 1(1)(e) of the Inheritance ( Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 Section 1(1)(e) of the I( PFD) A 1975 functions as the broad fallback where the other gateways do not accommodate a prospective applicant. Yet a claim on this basis is restricted by the obligation to show that, immediately prior to death, the deceased was maintaining the applicant, in whole or in part. Recognising how testing this can be, from 1 October 2014 the Inheritance and Trustee's Powers Act 2014 refined the evidential threshold. An individual is treated as maintained only where the deceased made a substantial contribution, in money or money’s worth, towards that person’s reasonable needs, excluding any contribution provided for full valuable consideration under a commercial arrangement. The expression being maintained appears only in I( PFD) A 1975, s 1(3). Some further assistance is found in I( PFD) A 1975, s 3(4), which the...

Key issues in respect of privacy, confidentiality and publicity in the Court of Protection It is fundamental to the rule of law that justice is not merely delivered but plainly seen to be delivered by all. As a general rule, hearings should be open to the public and the media, save in exceptional circumstances, in order to respect Article 10 ECHR (freedom of expression). At the same time, both the common law and Article 6 ECHR (the right to a fair trial) allow hearings to depart from open court in cases concerning children and other vulnerable people. Until quite recently, the default position in family matters and in the Court of Protection was to sit in private, with only limited scope for reporting. Proceedings before the Court of Protection frequently involve the most intimate, fundamental and private issues, and there is a...

Above all, be courteous to everyone at all times. Showing unfailing politeness to all concerned makes it difficult to go seriously wrong. The judge Ensure all mobiles are fully switched off before the judge arrives in court. Rise to your feet as the judge enters; the usher or the clerk will, in any event, remind you if you forget. Offer a bow when they reach the bench—their desk at the front of the court—and note that the judge will return the bow. You should also bow once more when they stand to leave the courtroom. At the beginning of proceedings, the judge will indicate when they are ready to hear from someone, and they usually invite the claimant’s advocate to go first. Addressing the judge For guidance on the correct forms of address for each level of the...

Practice Note This Practice Note explains the rules for assembling court bundles in family cases before 2 March 2026, covering what documents must appear, the required format and how bundles should be lodged, as specifically set out in the Family Procedure Rules 2010 ( FPR 2010), PD 27A. It also gives practical direction on who must compile the bundle, the sanctions for failing to comply, and the necessary arrangements for the collection of bundles from the court prior to 2 March 2026 inclusive. From 2 March 2026, FPR 2010, PD 27A was wholly replaced with a revised version, see FPR 2010, PD 27A. This Practice Note records the bundle obligations in FPR 2010, PD 27A applicable before 2 March 2026 for historical and contextual reference. For the rules on court bundles from 2 March 2026, see Practice Note: Preparation of court bundles in family...