A relationship or marriage breakdown is usually a difficult and stressful process. This will often be multiplied where arrangements need to be agreed for children. We understand the sensitivity that is needed in these situations and have many years’ experience in successfully dealing with cases where there are children; their needs are always the priority.
Our team can help with all disputes, whether relating to where your children should live and how much time they should spend with each parent, or more complex areas such as international relocation or abduction. We also assist with parental responsibility orders, and specific issues in relation to children, e.g. schooling.
When disagreements about children cannot be resolved then ultimately the Family Court can be asked to settle matters. Family law is less straight forward than many people think, and the legal jargon is very confusing.
The Family Court’s powers derive from the Children Act 1989. At the heart of English Law is the obligation that the court should only make orders that further the welfare and best interests of children. The court’s emphasis is on the legal rights of children rather than those of their parents.
The Family Court can determine ‘specific issues’ (e.g. where should a child go to school?) and make ‘prohibited steps’ (e.g. preventing a child from being removed aboard) but normally the key issue is “child arrangements”.
| Common term | Old legal term | New legal term |
| Access | Contact | Child arrangements |
| Custody | Residence | Child arrangements |
Child arrangements involve deciding how much time a child spends with one parent and with which parent the child lives. It remains possible for the arrangements to reflect shared care, even after divorce. There is no one right or wrong answer as every family is different.
An application for a Child Arrangements Order along with other sorts of orders (such as prohibited steps and specific issues) is made on a standard application form called a C100 and the payment of a Court fee.
Typically, Children Act proceedings will consist of 3 hearings: –
There can be additional hearings; for example, interim arrangements may be subject to a review hearing or applications may be made for specific steps within the Court timetable.
It must be stressed that court proceedings are usually the very last resort. Ultimately court proceedings could mean imposition of an outcome that neither you nor your former partner may welcome. We recommend serious consideration of Mediation. If you wish to reconsider attending mediation, please let us know and a referral can be made to an experienced mediator.
It is compulsory in most cases to have attended a MIAM – Mediation Information and Assessment Meeting before court proceedings are started.
No, however, any change of personal and financial factors since the original order was made may have great importance. A frequent factor is whether the receiving party has taken reasonable steps to increase their own earning capacity since the first order was made.
When considering any financial application, the Court must consider whether or not a “clean break” is achievable. If spousal maintenance is needed the Court will also look to see if it can be “capitalised”, in other words an additional sum is paid in lieu of future spousal maintenance. When asked to capitalise the court is restricted to considering whether there should be any variation to the original sum ordered, whether the provision can and should (in the interests of fairness) be capitalised and the maths of capitalisation. However, the court cannot re-open the capital claims from the original case. The court can capitalise into a lump sum or even a pension sharing order.
As well as our Resolution membership, we are members of the charity ‘Voices in the Middle’, which is a charity that provides support for children and young people affected by separation and divorce.
A nuptial agreement is a contract entered into by spouses or civil partners to regulate the ownership of money, property, assets and responsibility of debt.
The Ministry of Justice has said the increasing court fees said to be vital to ongoing court work for all those who seek justice, however,
No more unreasonable behaviour petitions, no more adultery petitions. As from April 2022, couples who want to divorce and then co-parent on an amicable basis
How does the court calculate child maintenance? The starting point for calculating child maintenance payments will always be the CMS formula. This formula applies on
© Gordons Partnership is the trading name of Gordons Partnership 2020 Limited a company registered in England & Wales (Company Number 12464371).
Registered office is at First Floor, 1 Chancery Lane, London WC2A 1LF. VAT No: GB 629 857 388 - Site by WBJ Designs
© Gordons Partnership is the trading name of Gordons Partnership 2020 Limited a company registered in England & Wales (Company Number 12464371).
Registered office is at First Floor, 1 Chancery Lane, London WC2A 1LF. VAT No: GB 629 857 388 - Site by WBJ Designs
