family family affairs are our business
Did you know? • The concept of common law marriage is a myth. If you are not married or in a civil partnership, you do not have an automatic entitlement to claim capital or income on the breakdown of a relationship • We successfully represented the husband in the case which is now the leading authority on freezing injunctions and without notice orders • A new relationship is a relevant factor to be taken into account in financial remedy proceedings, even in the absence of cohabitation. In a recent case the judge warned that new relationships are “a significant fly in the ointment in the assessment of need”.
“ Family law affects human relations and personal emotions and so a pragmatic but sympathetic approach is vital. We have a creative and commercial understanding of our cases to ensure that we provide you with personalised and dedicated advice. This is all the more important with family dynamics becoming ever more elaborate and intricate.� Lois Langton, Partner Howard Kennedy
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Relationships can be complicated; our advice won’t be Recent decades have seen families become ever more diverse. Rising divorce rates, civil partnerships, same-sex marriages, more second and third families, international relationships, increasing numbers of cohabiting couples…. all have contributed to the need for a more nuanced and sophisticated approach to managing the legal issues arising out of relationships. We know that you don’t want your family affairs to become complicated or controversial. We understand that you want them managed in a professional, personal and practical manner. We aim to create legal solutions that will result in an amicable and acceptable outcome for you and your family. Our goal is to help you create the right framework to solve/prevent family disputes so that you can look with confidence to the future. We are available at a moment’s notice and strive to give a 24/7 service. Where your case cannot be resolved by agreement and Court proceedings are necessary, we are known for our forthright and no nonsense approach.
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Our services We provide clear and concise advice on all aspects of family law. We have extensive experience advising on pre-nuptial and postnuptial agreements, divorce and separation, civil partnerships, cohabitation, the financial implications of relationship breakdown, children issues, injunctions and enforcement proceedings. Our clients (or their spouses) include wealthy business people, particularly in the property industry, City professionals, owners of family businesses, and high profile media, entertainment and sports personalities. We have a strong track record of advising clients with complex tax, trust and corporate structures, and around 80% of our cases have some form of international element.
We bring a commercial approach to your personal affairs, offering professionalism and commitment to our clients. We work closely with the private client, corporate, property and reputation management teams at Howard Kennedy, and we have close contacts with accountants, financial advisors, counsellors and other intermediaries. This all helps to ensure that the right people are involved in your case to ensure the best possible outcome for you. We are committed to negotiating where possible rather than litigating, and we will explore with you the options, including mediation and other forms of alternative dispute resolution, available to you to help resolve your case. We have specialist trained mediators and collaborative lawyers who are always on hand where appropriate.
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Market insight “ So far as pre-nuptial agreements are concerned, English law was long regarded as retrograde and paternalistic in its failure to reflect modern society and how couples wished to arrange their relationships and regulate their future affairs. Whilst pre-nuptial agreements are not yet enshrined in legislation, recent developments in case law have seen a shift in approach by the English Courts and there is an increasing trend towards accepting that individuals should be able to choose to create a framework for the division of their finances in the event of separation. That trend is not confined to the wealthy.”
“ Pre-nups are becoming as much about inheritance as they are about divorce. They are increasingly sought by parents concerned that, if their children marry and subsequently divorce, the wealth will remain in the family”.
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Recent work
Key contacts
• A cting for a former wife in the case of EVG[2015] EWHC 2101 (Fam) examining the interplay of UK and European law in Trusts of Land and Appointments of Trustees Act 1996 application to determine jurisdiction
Lois Langton Partner lois.langton@howardkennedy.com +44 (0)20 3755 5559
• Acting for the commissioning parents in the case of DM and LK, Re [2016] EWHC 270 (fam) which is a leading authority of what constitutes an “enduring relationship” and also provides guidance on the issue of consent • Acting for the husband in the reported case of ULUBK [2013] EWHC 1735 (fam) which is the leading authority on freezing injunctions and without notice applications
Alan Kaufman Consultant alan.kaufman@howardkennedy.com +44 (0)20 3755 5538
• Acting for the wife in the Court of Appeal decision of Arbiliv Arbili [2015] EWCA Civ 542 in a case concerning the treatment of inherited property and the use of unlawfully obtained confidential information.
“They have an intelligent group of people working there. They are able to react very quickly to difficulties on complicated cases under a lot of time pressure.” Chambers UK 2016
No.1 London Bridge London SE1 9BG DX 144370 Southwark 4 Tel: +44 (0)20 3755 6000 Fax: +44 (0)20 3650 7000 www.howardkennedy.com