Family Law Blog : General
Comment on divorce & family law
By Abby Smith, on Thursday March 12, 2015 at 1:30 pm
Divorce does not bring an end to any financial claims between a married couple – as has been amply demonstrated in the recently reported case of Vince v Wyatt. As family lawyers we speak almost daily to clients who believe that “divorce proceedings” means bringing an end to a marriage,…
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By Sian Winter, on Wednesday February 18, 2015 at 1:00 pm
Divorce disputes where Facebook posts form part of the evidence seem to be on the rise. Yet more reason to be very careful about what you post on social media, and when. Facebook lesson for divorce judge I was once involved in a family law hearing where a very senior…
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By Kimberley Bailey, on Wednesday February 4, 2015 at 2:00 pm
It’s a fantastic victory for equality that gay couples now have the right to choose whether to enter a civil partnership or a marriage. And that’s absolutely how it should be. Shame the same can’t be said for heterosexual couples. Couples can live together as cohabitees, although the law offers…
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By Kathryn McTaggart, on Wednesday January 28, 2015 at 2:00 pm
This blog was written prior to the change in divorce law on 6 April 2022, which introduced no fault divorce. The divorce process has come a long way since Henry VIII but it has been in a fairly familiar shape since the 1960s. Does it need change now though to…
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By Judith Buckland, on Wednesday January 21, 2015 at 2:26 pm
Adultery, alienated children and coercive, possibly even abusive, relationships are all under the spotlight in the long running BBC radio show The Archers. But how do soap opera story lines reflect real life family and relationship dramas? I admit it, I was (until now) a covert Archers addict. Like all…
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By Andrew Robotham, on Thursday May 29, 2014 at 10:00 am
A new Channel 4 TV show entitled Married at First Sight will see volunteers who have never met before getting married in front of the TV cameras. This is not a completely new idea as something similar was undertaken by the Birmingham radio station BRMB in 1999. In this case,…
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By Andrew Woolley, on Thursday May 8, 2014 at 10:00 am
An interesting debate has been hotting up over the last few weeks on the topic of fee-charging McKenzie friends in cases like divorce. It came after watchdog the Legal Services Consumer Panel published a report which calls for McKenzie Friends to be recognised as increasing access to justice and a “legitimate…
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By Susan Harwood, on Tuesday February 25, 2014 at 9:30 am
I happened upon an interesting discussion on Radio 5 Live the other day about the importance of checking the credentials of legal services you seek out online. The potential for bogus law practitioners making money out of the internet is the same as in any other sector: the unqualified builder…
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By Andrew Woolley, on Thursday January 2, 2014 at 9:00 am
Helping couples reach a non-confrontational solution to their separation should be right at the top of priorities for a family law specialist when taking on a new client. Our professional code of conduct dictates we should aim to do this and the practices of the “Rottweiler” lawyer have no place…
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By Andrew Woolley, on Monday November 25, 2013 at 5:24 pm
For the uniformed, divorce probably still means going to court to sort it all out. As family lawyers, we know that is far from being a realistic picture. I would estimate that around 95 per cent of the cases we deal with at Woolley & Co, Solicitors get to a…
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By Andrew Woolley, on Thursday September 26, 2013 at 10:00 am
The concept of a good divorce may at first seem contradictory. Divorce is not a good thing for anyone. It is the culmination of a relationship breakdown that is likely to involve moving house, starting a new life and relationships with children, family and friends changing dramatically. There is a…
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By Andrew Woolley, on Thursday July 11, 2013 at 10:00 am
Divorce lawyers are a trustworthy bunch, or at least we should be. The good news on that front is that the public think lawyers are more trustworthy than accountants, bankers and estate agents. It may come as no surprise to find lawyers fall behind teachers and doctors. However, the recent…
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