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An Occupation Order regulates or restricts the right of occupation of the family home between family members and is a form of injunction. Orders can either be declaratory or restrictive in nature.   For example, they may declare an...

The Family court recently made an Order that a child should receive immunisations despite the father objecting to the same.   The child concerned was a 5 year old girl. Whilst her parents were together she received all vaccinations as recommended by...

Official figures have been released this week confirming that a total of 13 couples started online divorce applications on Christmas Day 2018. A total of 455 online applications were submitted during the Christmas and New Year period in total. It is...

Monday 7th January 2019 is being dubbed ‘divorce day’ due to the reported spike in the number of couples considering ending their marriages after the festive periods. It is suggested that married couples experiencing troubles may wait until...

Data published by the Office for National Statistics shows that there were 8.4 divorces of heterosexual couples per 1,000 married men and women last year. This is a 45-year low and a 6 per cent decrease from 2016. However, divorce rates between same sex...

A Consent Order reflects the terms of a financial agreement reached between separating spouses . The Order is agreed and signed by both parties and forwarded to the Court for the Court’s approval. Once approved by the Court the agreement is legally...

The government consultation into divorce law reform is open until 10 December. To ensure your voice is heard click here  and get involved.  If you are currently going through a divorce or separation or are considering splitting with your...

Both parents are legally responsible for the financial costs of raising their children. If parents separate the parent who the children do not live with may be required to pay child maintenance to the parent the children live with. Child maintenance is...

The fact that your spouse is in prison has no bearing on the validity of the divorce provided that all the necessary requirements are met.  In some circumstances it can be used as proof that the marriage has irrevocably broken down e.g if the reason...

In a BBC report, the lead officer for football policing in England and Wales stated that there was a "significant rise" in domestic abuse reports during the World Cup. More than 60 incidents were reported after England's semi-final loss,...

The West Midlands region is currently piloting an electronic based filing scheme for financial remedy proceedings. Although in its early stages, the scheme requires Court forms and evidential documents to be filed at court electronically. The scheme aims...

A High Court Judge stated that “there isn't one law for the famous and one for the rest of the community” after TV star Ant McPartlin failed to attend a preliminary hearing in relation to his divorce from Lisa Armstrong. Mr...

If you are not married and you split up whether your partner will be able to claim against the house usually depends whose name it is in. If the property is owned jointly the starting point is that it is shared equally. This is the case regardless of who...

In most cases you have to consider mediation as an option before applying to court. This means you have to have a meeting with a mediator before making an application. This meeting is called a Mediation Information and Assessment Meeting (MIAM) and it is...

Ant McPartlin, best known as one half of the TV presenting duo Ant and Dec, has almost completed his divorce from his wife of 11 years Lisa Armstrong. On Tuesday in the Central London Family Court judge Alun Jenkins granted the decree nisi , which leaves...

A consultation has been launched by the Ministry of Justice to gather views on reforming the current legal requirements for a divorce . The current law in England and Wales has been in place since the early 70’s and arguably does not reflect modern...

Although they announced their separation in 2016, Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie are reportedly yet to reach an agreement in respect of the care arrangements for their 6 children. Reports suggest that Brad Pitt is currently seeking an arrangement whereby the...

This week has seen the Prime Minister’s groundbreaking announcement that legislation will be put in place to allow heterosexual couples to enter into Civil Partnerships. The announcement follows a landmark decision of the Supreme Court in June that...

A recent study conducted has suggested that a large number of divorced women may be losing out on substantial sums of money upon their retirement. The study suggests that this is due to their husband’s pensions being left out of the financial agreement...

Following the sad case of Mrs Owens who was forced to remain in a loveless marriage after being denied a divorce over the summer, there has been increasing pressure on the government to change the law on divorce. The association of family lawyers,...