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Latest Family News

Standard orders—amendments to the public law orders

The following Family news provides comprehensive and up to date legal information on Standard orders—amendments to the public law orders

Guidance from Court of Appeal on domestic abuse hearings and fact-finding hearings (Re H-N and others (children) (domestic abuse:finding of fact hearings))

The following Family news provides comprehensive and up to date legal information on Guidance from Court of Appeal on domestic abuse hearings and fact-finding hearings (Re H-N and others (children) (domestic abuse:finding of fact hearings))

Court of Appeal denies journalist’s request for extensive access to court papers (Newman v Southampton City Council)

The following Family news provides comprehensive and up to date legal information on Court of Appeal denies journalist’s request for extensive access to court papers (Newman v Southampton City Council)

Powers available to local authorities to facilitate applications for settled status for looked after children in the absence of parental co-operation (W and Re Z (EU Settled Status for Looked After Children))

Powers available to local authorities to facilitate applications for settled status for looked after children in the absence of parental co-operation (W and Re Z (EU Settled Status for Looked After Children))

Featured Family content

Notice of acting

Case number [insert number][In the principal registryORIn the [insert court location] FAMILY court]Sitting at [insert place]Notice of...

Private children—paramountcy of the child's welfare

The paramountcy principleWhen any court determines any question with respect to:•the upbringing of the child, or•the administration of the child's...

The no order principle

This Practice Note explains the no order principle contained in section 1(5) of the Children Act 1989 (ChA 1989). It explains when the principle...

Sequestration (confiscation of assets) within contempt proceedings

Sequestration is a process for dealing with a contempt of court that would be otherwise punishable by a committal under which the assets of the...

Practice notes

Decree absolute—divorce

Online divorceWhere a divorce is proceeding via the online service note that while rules relating to divorce proceedings are generally to be found in...

9th Nov

Practice notes

Application to vary, extend or discharge a non-molestation or occupation order

Coronavirus (COVID-19): Guidance has been issued, including by the President of the Family Division, regarding all proceedings in the Family Court in...

9th Nov

COVID-19

Practice notes

Grounds for judicial separation

Applications for judicial separation are relatively rare in practice. It may arise where the client has strong religious and or cultural reasons for...

9th Nov

Practice notes

Drafting the terms of a financial consent order

This Practice Note sets out the basic principles to be applied when drafting a financial consent order including the preparation and structure of the...

9th Nov

Practice notes

Capitalised maintenance—Duxbury calculations

The basis of Duxbury calculationsA Duxbury calculation is an actuarial calculation designed to identify the capital sum required to meet a periodical...

9th Nov

Practice notes

Emergency prohibited steps and child arrangements orders

Coronavirus (COVID-19): Guidance has been issued, including by the President of the Family Division, regarding all proceedings in the Family Court in...

9th Nov

Practice notes

The grounds on which a marriage is void

A void marriage is one that will be treated by the court as never having taken place. The grounds on which a marriage will be void are set out in...

9th Nov

Practice notes

Undefended divorce proceedings

Online divorceOn 6 May 2018 the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) launched its online divorce service nationwide for the public acting as litigants in person....

9th Nov

Practice notes

Void and voidable marriages

The Matrimonial Causes Act 1973 (MCA 1973) sets out the grounds on which a marriage is void or voidable and the bars preventing the grant of a decree...

9th Nov

Practice notes

Child Arrangements Programme—the procedure for section 8 applications

Coronavirus (COVID-19): Guidance has been issued, including by the President of the Family Division, regarding all proceedings in the Family Court in...

9th Nov

COVID-19

In-house

Practice notes

Statements of truth in family proceedings

This Practice Note is impacted by the exit of the UK from the EU on 31 January 2020. This has implications for practitioners when considering an...

9th Nov

Practice notes

Amended, supplemental and further petitions

The distinction between an amended petition, a supplemental petition and a further petitionWhere it is necessary in some way to amend a petition...

9th Nov

Precedents

Specimen statement of issues for a first appointment—financial remedy application

In the Family Court sitting at [location][Case No]Between1[insert name] ApplicantAnd2[ insert name] RespondentStatement of issues for the First...

9th Nov

Practice notes

The grounds on which a marriage is voidable

A decree of nullity granted after 31 July 1971 in respect of a voidable marriage operates to annul the marriage with effect from decree absolute and...

9th Nov

Practice notes

General principles—lump sum orders

This Practice Note sets out the general principles to be applied by the court when considering whether to make a lump sum order within financial...

9th Nov

Practice notes

Declarations of parentage—procedure

The procedure for an application for a declaration of parentage is governed by the Family Procedure Rules 2010 (FPR 2010), SI 2010/2955, Pt...

9th Nov

Most recent Property rights content

Practice notes

Enforcement of orders made under TOLATA 1996

Coronavirus (COVID-19): The guidance detailing normal practice set out in this Practice Note may be affected by measures concerning process and...

20th Apr

Q&As

Where a property is registered in the parties’ joint names, the cohabiting relationship breaks down and one party moves out of the property, what options are available to the remaining owner to remove their former cohabitant from the title of the property where the former cohabitant made no financial contribution whatsoever to the property? What can the remaining owner do if their former cohabitant refuses to reply to any communications?

Unlike a marriage, where the court has broad redistributive powers on the making of a decree of divorce, judicial separation or nullity pursuant to...

Produced in partnership with Chris Bryden of 4 King’s Bench Walk 30th Mar

Practice notes

Notices and restrictions

Notices and restrictions may be used to afford some limited protection of an asset comprising land or property, which comprises registered land, in...

25th Mar

Practice notes

Cohabitant claims in Scotland

IP COMPLETION DAY: 11pm (GMT) on 31 December 2020 marks the end of the Brexit transition/implementation period entered into following the UK’s...

Produced in partnership with Karen Gibbons of Harper Macleod LLP 17th Mar

Scottish Law

Q&As

In proceedings under the Trusts of Land and Appointment of Trustees Act 1996, can an extension to the deadline for witness statement be agreed between the parties, or is an application to the court for permission and relief from sanctions required?

Proceedings under the Trusts of Land and Appointment of Trustees Act 1996 are dealt with under the Civil Procedure Rules 1998 (CPR), not the Family...

Produced in partnership with Paul Infield of The 36 Group 15th Mar

Q&As

A property is jointly owned and there is a declaration of trust setting out how the property is owned. One joint owner wishes to seek a sale of the property and there is a dispute as to the division of net sale proceeds. Should an application under the Trusts of Land and Appointment of Trustees Act 1996 be commenced under Part 7 or Part 8 of the Civil Procedure Rules 1998?

The Trusts of Land and Appointment of Trustees Act 1996 (TOLATA 1996) affords the court wide powers to deal with trusts of land, including to make a...

Produced in partnership with Chris Bryden of 4 King’s Bench Walk 5th Mar

Q&As

Can an application be made under the Trusts of Land and Appointment of Trustees Act 1996 for a declaration in relation to property or land situated outside the jurisdiction of England and Wales?

Section 14 of the Trusts of Land and Appointment of Trustees Act 1996 (TOLATA 1996) enables the court, on the application of any person who is a...

5th Mar

Q&As

Where a joint owner wishes to make an application under the Trusts of Land and Appointment of Trustees Act 1996 (TOLATA 1996) and an application has already been made by the other joint owner under Schedule 1 to the Children Act 1989, should TOLATA 1996 application be made under CPR 7 rather than CPR 8?

It is fairly common that where unmarried parents separate, the court will be faced with cross-applications under the Trusts of Land and Appointment of...

Produced in partnership with Chris Bryden of 4 King’s Bench Walk 3rd Mar

Practice notes

Introduction to costs in proceedings subject to the Civil Procedure Rules 1998 for family lawyers

There are a number of circumstances in which the costs provisions of the Civil Procedure Rules 1998 (CPR), SI 1998/3132 will apply to proceedings...

Produced in partnership with Chris Bryden of 4 King’s Bench Walk 2nd Mar

Practice notes

TOLATA 1996—procedure

Coronavirus (COVID-19): Guidance has been issued, including by HMCTS, regarding proceedings in England and Wales during the coronavirus (COVID-19)...

2nd Mar

Practice notes

TOLATA 1996—pre-action matters

Pre-action protocolThere is no specific pre-action protocol relating to claims under the Trusts of Land and Appointment of Trustees Act 1996 (TOLATA...

2nd Mar

Precedents

Specimen final orders under the Trusts of Land and Appointment of Trustees Act 1996

UPON HEARING [counsel OR solicitor] for the claimant and [counsel OR solicitor] for the defendant:Declaration of trust in relation to a property[IT IS...

14th Feb

Q&As

What remedies are available to cohabitants or former cohabitants where they are not able to agree the ownership of personal belongings (chattels) including those of a child?

Personal belongings are viewed as chattels by the courts. Ideally, the division of chattels should be agreed by way of a schedule denoting the...

13th Feb

Q&As

In proceedings under the Trusts of Land and Appointment of Trustees Act 1996 (TOLATA 1996), does equitable accounting only apply to the period after cohabiting parties have separated, or can the court consider the whole period they lived together at the property? Where a couple jointly own a property, but one party has paid all repayments in relation to a registered loan during their relationship, can that person argue under TOLATA 1996 that they should have an enhanced share of the sale proceeds?

‘Equitable accounting’ is a process whereby an adjustment is made in the ultimate division of the proceeds of sale of a property, following the...

Produced in partnership with Nicholas Starks of St Ives Chambers 13th Feb

Q&As

Where the parties are the joint owners of a property and have young children, under which legislation should proceedings be issued, the Trusts of Land and Appointment of Trustees Act 1996 or Schedule 1 to the Children Act 1989? What are the differences between the two?

Under Schedule 1 to the Children Act 1989 (ChA 1989) an order may be made for the payment of a lump sum to be made for the purpose of enabling any...

13th Feb

Q&As

What are the key differences between a claim under section 17 of the Married Women's Property Act 1882 and section 14 of the Trusts of Land and Appointment of Trustees Act 1996, other than the nature of relationship between the parties?

Despite the persisting belief, there is no legal concept of a ‘common law’ husband or wife. Therefore, unmarried parties who may occupy a property for...

Produced in partnership with Chris Bryden of 4 King’s Bench Walk 13th Feb

Q&As