GreatWest Law · London solicitors
Family Law Solicitors
Family matters require highly sensitive, expert legal guidance to navigate emotionally charged transitions. Our dedicated Family Law team provides comprehensive support across all aspects of relationship formation, dissolution, and arrangements for children, always aiming for constructive and fair solutions.
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Family Law Solicitors Divorce, Children, and Finance
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Decisive, discreet advice for separation, child, and financial matters
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Services
- Divorce and Dissolution
- Financial Settlements
- Child Custody Arrangements
- Prenuptial and Cohabitation Agreements
- Separation
- Mediation and Negotiation
- Domestic Abuse Protection
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What We Do
We assist clients through all stages of personal change, offering clear advice and strong representation.
Our Action
Guiding clients through the entire process of No-Fault Divorce or Civil Partnership Dissolution. This involves preparing and submitting the application, managing all court communications, and securing the final order (formerly the Decree Absolute).
Your Benefit
Clean Break and Efficiency: We ensure the process is handled with minimal stress and delay, allowing clients to legally separate and achieve a clean legal and emotional break without needing to assign blame.
Meticulously gathering and disclosing all financial information (Form E), negotiating the division of marital assets including property, pensions, investments, and business interests. We then formalise the agreement into a legally binding Consent Order approved by the court.
Fair and Sustainable Future. We fight to secure a just financial outcome that meets future needs (housing, retirement) and ensures a legally watertight agreement, preventing future claims from the former spouse.
Advising on disputes regarding where a child lives (‘Residence’) and how much time they spend with each parent (‘Contact’). We prioritise resolving these through mediation and negotiation, but provide robust court representation when necessary to secure a Child Arrangement Order.
Prioritising the Child’s Welfare. Our goal is to achieve stable, workable arrangements that are in the child’s best interests, reducing conflict between parents and ensuring stable ongoing relationships.
Drafting and advising on agreements signed before or after marriage to clarify how assets should be divided in the event of a future divorce. We ensure the agreements meet the criteria for enforceability set by UK case law.
Financial Certainty and Asset Protection. Provides clarity and protection for pre-marital wealth, inherited assets, or business interests, giving both parties financial assurance about their future security.
Representing clients in structured negotiation sessions with the other party’s solicitor or advising them through independent mediation.
Reduced Cost and Conflict. Offers a private, flexible, and often quicker resolution, allowing the client to maintain more control over the outcome than a judge would provide.
Applying urgently to the court for protective orders, including Non-Molestation Orders (to stop harassment or abuse) and Occupation Orders (to exclude a perpetrator from the family home).
Your Benefit:
Immediate Safety. Provides rapid legal protection and security for the client and any children, backed by the power of the court.
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Benefits We Provide
Our firm delivers measurable benefits centred on security, control, and emotional support during difficult transitions.
Financial Certainty and Security
Meticulous analysis of complex financial assets (pensions, businesses, trusts) and leveraging forensic accounting principles to ensure full and frank financial disclosure from the other party.
We ensure you achieve the fairest financial settlement possible, securing adequate funds for rehousing and retirement. We finalize this with a sealed Consent Order, providing a legally binding clean break that shields your future income and inherited wealth from future claims.
Protecting Children's Welfare
Providing sensitive, clear legal advice on the Child Arrangement Programme and drafting proposals for shared parenting time. We always focus on the child’s welfare as the paramount legal consideration.
We help establish workable, long-term arrangements for your children’s residence and contact, reducing parental conflict and providing the stability necessary for the child’s well-being.
Conflict Minimisation and Control
Prioritizing Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) methods, such as solicitor-led negotiation and mediation, before resorting to court litigation. We advocate strongly but constructively.
Resolving issues outside of court is significantly cheaper, faster, and less emotionally draining. This approach allows you and your ex-partner to retain control over the decisions affecting your family, rather than leaving the outcome to a judge.
Safeguarding Against Risk
For unmarried clients, we draft and enforce Cohabitation Agreements and advise on TOLATA claims to establish beneficial interests in property. In cases of abuse, we move immediately to apply for Non-Molestation and Occupation Orders.
We provide rapid physical and emotional security where abuse is a concern. For cohabiting clients, we establish legally clear rights over property and finances, preventing lengthy and costly disputes if the relationship ends.
Strategic Legal Process Management
Overseeing the entire legal process from the initial divorce application to the sealing of the final financial order. We handle all court paperwork and adherence to deadlines.
Our expertise prevents procedural errors and delays, ensuring a smooth, efficient transition to your next phase of life. You gain confidence knowing a highly experienced team is managing all complex legal steps correctly.
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FAQs
What is "No-Fault Divorce" and how do we handle the process?
No-Fault Divorce, introduced in 2022, removed the requirement to blame a spouse. We handle the entire process by preparing and submitting the sole or joint application, managing the required 20-week ‘reflection period,’ securing the Conditional Order, and applying for the Final Order. We ensure the process is legally compliant and as stress-free as possible for you.
How is the marital home or property divided in a divorce?
The division of property is determined by the need to achieve a fair outcome, often prioritising the housing needs of any minor children. We advise on options like selling the home, transferring ownership with a charge-back, or the Mesher Order, ensuring any agreement is recorded in a legally binding Consent Order.
What is a "Financial Clean Break" and why is it important to achieve one?
A clean break legally ends all financial dependency between spouses, preventing either party from making a claim against the other’s future income, property, or pension (e.g., lottery winnings, inherited wealth). It is crucial for future financial security and is typically formalised within a Financial Consent Order.
What is required for a Financial Consent Order to be legally binding?
For a financial agreement to be legally binding, it must be drafted by a solicitor and submitted to the court for approval. The judge must be satisfied that the agreement is fair based on the disclosure of all assets and liabilities from both parties (Form E).
Are Prenuptial Agreements legally binding?
Prenuptial Agreements (Pre-nups) are not strictly legally binding in the UK, but the Supreme Court treats them as having ‘decisive weight’ if they were entered into freely, both parties received Independent Legal Advice (ILA), and there was full financial disclosure. We ensure your pre-nup meets these strict enforceability standards.
What factors determine child arrangements (residence and contact)?
The single paramount consideration for all child arrangements is the child’s welfare. The court considers the welfare checklist, including the child’s wishes and feelings, their physical and emotional needs, and the capability of each parent to meet those needs. We focus on non-confrontational solutions.
What is the benefit of using mediation before applying for a Child Arrangement Order?
The court strongly encourages mediation. Before applying for a Child Arrangement Order, you generally must attend a Mediation Information & Assessment Meeting (MIAM). Mediation is cheaper, quicker, confidential, and allows parents to retain control over the outcome, improving co-parenting relationships.
I am not married to my child’s mother/father. Do I have Parental Responsibility?
A mother automatically has Parental Responsibility (PR). A father automatically has PR if he was married to the mother at the time of birth or if he is named on the child’s birth certificate (since December 2003). If not, PR can be acquired by a court order or formal agreement with the mother.
What is a "No Order Principle" in relation to children?
This principle means the court will only make a Child Arrangement Order if it is satisfied that doing so is better for the child than making no order at all. It reflects the view that parental agreement, if safe and possible, is generally preferable.
What is a MIAM in Family Law?
A MIAM (Mediation Information & Assessment Meeting) is a mandatory first step for most people applying to court for a divorce financial settlement or a child arrangements order. You must attend a meeting with a mediator to discuss whether mediation is a suitable alternative to court.
What is "TOLATA" and when is it used in family disputes?
TOLATA stands for the Trusts of Land and Appointment of Trustees Act 1996. It is used by unmarried couples or joint owners to resolve disputes about the legal ownership or sale of a jointly owned property (e.g., to determine the beneficial shares in a property).
How long does a financial settlement take to finalise after the divorce application is submitted?
The financial process is separate from the divorce timing. It depends on complexity and cooperation, but a straightforward financial settlement can take 6 to 12 months to achieve full financial disclosure, negotiate, and get the Consent Order sealed by the court.
What protective measures can you take in cases involving domestic abuse?
We can apply to the court for urgent protective orders, including a Non-Molestation Order (prohibiting harassment or violence) and an Occupation Order (excluding the perpetrator from the family home). These carry the power of arrest for breach.
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