About Family Law
In family law, half the battle is keeping on top of the latest case law, legislation, precedents and forms. Lexis+ Family brings everything together for you online, in one place. So you can get up to speed faster, with more time to spend on your clients.
Financial provision
Comprehensive coverage of all aspects of financial provision, from underlying principles considered by the court to applications under specific legislation. Not forgetting in-depth practical guidance on specialist areas.
Private children
Get stuck into all areas of private children law, from fundamental principles to evidence and procedure. Plus subtopics to make sure practitioners have the relevant practical guidance at their fingertips.
International law
Families are increasingly international, so practitioners need quick access to relevant practical guidance. We'll provide the information you need to advise your clients on the best jurisdiction.
Lexis+® Family
In family law, half the battle is keeping on top of the latest case law, legislation, precedents and forms. Lexis+® Family brings everything together for you online, in one place.
Latest Family News
On 29 April 2026, the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Act 2026, which, among other things, makes a series of amendments to the Children Act 1989 (ChA...
The UK Supreme Court has announced that His Majesty The King has approved the appointment of Lord Justice Snowden as a Justice of the Supreme Court....
The Victims and Courts Bill has received Royal Assent, introducing reforms aimed at strengthening victims’ rights and improving the operation of the...
This week's edition of the Family weekly highlights includes recent judgments on a prohibited steps order to prevent a mother from disclosing to the...
This week's edition of the Family weekly highlights includes details of the minutes from the latest Family Procedure Rules Committee meeting. Recent...
Latest Family Practice Notes
This Practice Note considers the Transparency Review set up in 2020, the President of the Family Division’s Transparency in the Family Court report...
This Practice Note considers the transparency reporting pilot in the Financial Remedies Court (FRC) was launched in December 2023 and extended to all...
This Practice Note provides guidance on case law in relation to media access and transparency in the family courts following the move towards...
This Practice Note sets out the regime for transferring tenancies on relationship breakdown under Schedule 7 to the Family Law Act 1996 (FLA 1996),...
This Practice Note considers when information can be communicated from proceedings where the Family Procedure Rules 2010 (FPR 2010), SI 2010/2955, Pt...
Latest Family Precedents
Bank accounts1Provide a schedule of all bank or other accounts (whether current, deposit, loan or other) not disclosed in Form E in which the...
In the FAMILY COURT SITTING AT [insert court location]No. [insert number]Between[insert applicant name]Applicantand[insert respondent...
In the Financial Remedies CourtGatekeeping and Allocation CertificateThis Certificate will assist the Court to allocate the case to the appropriate...
In the Family Courtsitting at [Court name]Case No: [Case number][The Matrimonial Causes Act 1973 OR The Civil Partnership Act 2004 OR The Matrimonial...
This document provides general guidance regarding an application to court to vary a financial order. Your family lawyer will be able to provide...
Latest Family Q&As
Featured Family content
Procedure—Schedule 1 to the Children Act 1989
Procedure—Schedule 1 to the Children Act 1989This Practice Note sets out the procedural requirements in relation to an application under Schedule 1 to...
Applications under the Protection from Harassment Act 1997
Applications under the Protection from Harassment Act 1997This Practice Note explains the six criminal offences that may be committed under the...
Striking out a statement of case
Striking out a statement of caseThis Practice Note explains the court's power to strike out a statement of case. It summarises the grounds on which a...
The grounds on which a marriage is void
The grounds on which a marriage is voidA void marriage is one that will be treated by the court as never having taken place. The grounds on which a...
Sequestration (confiscation of assets) within contempt proceedings
Sequestration (confiscation of assets) within contempt proceedingsSequestration is a process for dealing with a contempt of court that would be...
Application to vary, extend or discharge a non-molestation or occupation order
Application to vary, extend or discharge a non-molestation or occupation orderUnder the Family Law Act 1996 (FLA 1996) a non-molestation order is an...
Notice to show cause applications in family proceedings
Notice to show cause applications in family proceedingsIf one party considers that an agreement has been reached (usually in relation to financial...
What is the procedure to withdraw an application made on Form C100?
Pre-nuptial agreements—client guide
Pre-nuptial agreements—client guideThis document provides general guidance regarding pre-nuptial agreements. Your family lawyer will be able to...
Steps to take after a client meeting
Steps to take after a client meetingFile noteA file note (also known as an attendance note) should be prepared immediately after the first interview,...
Is a divorce petition a public document and can anyone request a copy? If not, is there anything to prevent a party to a divorce from giving copies of the petition to a third party such as an employer?
Declarations of parentage—procedure
Declarations of parentage—procedureThe procedure for an application for a declaration of parentage is governed by the Family Procedure Rules 2010 (FPR...
Working with counsel
Working with counselInstructing counsel to advocate on a client’s behalf should be a matter of careful thought and preparation. The role of counsel is...
Non-molestation orders
Non-molestation ordersUnder the Family Law Act 1996 (FLA 1996) a non-molestation order is an order prohibiting a person (the respondent) from...
Reports under section 37 of the Children Act 1989
Reports under section 37 of the Children Act 1989Under section 37 of the Children Act 1989 (ChA 1989), the court has the power to order an...
‘Associated persons’ as defined in section 62(3) of Family Law Act 1996 includes people who have, or have had, an intimate personal relationship with each other which is or was of significant duration. How is ‘significant duration’ defined and how long is considered significant?
Financial clean break orders in family proceedings
Financial clean break orders in family proceedingsDuty of the court to consider a clean breakAlthough there is no presumption in favour of there being...
What is the procedure to withdraw a divorce petition that has already been served on the respondent? Will the respondent be notified of any application to withdraw the petition and what does the court take into account in deciding whether the petition should be dismissed?
Associated legal terms
Form A
A Form A is a court form in family proceedings setting out the applicant's notice of (or intention to proceed with) an application for a financial order.
Global or ‘Segal’ orders
A global or ‘Segal’ order is an order for spousal periodical payments where credit is required to be given for any sums payable under a statutory child support calculation. The court makes an order in a global amount of spousal periodical payments, to be reduced pro tanto in the event of a maintenance calculation by the Child Maintenance Service. Such orders may be made by the court where the parties have not agreed what the child maintenance should be (and therefore cannot enter into a written agreement and have that agreement converted into a consent order) but the court does not have jurisdiction to make an order for periodical payments for a child. The approach was approved by the Court of Appeal in Dorney-Kingdom v Dorney-Kingdom, when Thorpe LJ said that such an order is ‘just within the bounds of legitimacy, since it is no sort of ouster of or challenge to the jurisdiction of the Agency, but merely a holding until such time as the Agency can carry out its proper function. But it seems to me absolutely crucial that if legitimacy is to be preserved, there must be a substantial ingredient of spousal support in the Segal order’ (para [15]).
Pre-application protocols
An applicant in relevant family proceedings must attend a Mediation Information and Assessment Meeting (MIAM) before making an application to the court. In addition, annexed to FPR 2010, PD 9A is the pre-application protocol for an application for a financial remedy and guidance notes. The protocol provides that the aim of all pre-application proceedings steps should be to assist the parties to resolve their differences speedily and fairly, or at least narrow the issues, and should that not be possible, to assist the court to do so.
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